DU MOTION
Kick-off Meeting of the 'Volunteering Beyond Handicaps' Project Held in Istanbul
Kick-off Meeting of the 'Volunteering Beyond Handicaps' Project Held in Istanbul
The official kick-off meeting of the Erasmus+ Sport project Volunteering Beyond Handicaps (VoBeHa) took place in Istanbul, marking the beginning of an inspiring initiative aimed at empowering young people with disabilities, aged 18-30, through volunteering activities in sports events. The meeting brought together representatives from the project's partner organizations: Dubrovnik Sports Association (Croatia), Kargenc Club (Turkiye), and Team Solaris (North Macedonia), all committed to fostering greater inclusion and accessibility in sports.
The VoBeHa project, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Sport program, will create new opportunities for young people with disabilities, by enhancing their participation and skills in volunteering in sport events. In general, it will promote capacity – building, raising awareness and best practice sharing among partner organizations, to senzites the society those young individuals, regardless of their abilities, can actively contribute to it.
During the kick-off meeting, partners discussed the project's objectives, implementation timeline, and upcoming activities. The meeting also provided an opportunity to align expectations, define responsibilities, and explore strategies for engaging young people with disabilities in sport volunteering experiences.
“Our mission is to break barriers and to create a more diverse volunteering community that benefits both individuals and community itself,” said Alen Bošković, secretary general of Dubrovnik sports association. “By fostering collaboration between our partners and empowering young people with disabilities, we are confident that VoBeHa will have a lasting impact, precisely in sports sector.”
The next steps of the project include developing volunteering module for people with disabilities, organizing training session upon that and participating in local, regional and national sports events aimed at promoting inclusive volunteering practices across the partner countries, firstly in Turkiye and North Macedonia.
The Project will end up in Dubrovnik during Du Motion – Runners’ Days Dubrovnik in 2026 with participating teams of volunteers with disabilities from each partner country, serving as ambassadors.
The VoBeHa project is financed by the Erasmus+ program of the European Union in the amount of 60,000 €. Dubrovnik sports Association is the coordinator of the project.
