9th Edition of Special Needs Awareness Weeks Announced

The Luxembourg city, the "Specific Needs" Participatory Committee and more than 90 partners have announced the nineth edition of the Specific Needs Awareness Weeks, from Saturday 23 April to Saturday 4 June 2022.

Information stands, demonstrations, workshops, song and dance performances, meetings, conferences, meals in the dark, guided tours and other varied programme will allow the public to better understand the daily life and needs of the people concerned. Thanks to this initiative, which has met with great success in the past, the Luxembourg city promotes exchanges and the creation of links between the people concerned and the general public and encourages a better way of living together in a sustainable way.

Programme :

• “Specific needs” day of reflection on Saturday 23 April at the Bonnevoie cultural centre, an annual meeting between the City of Luxembourg, associations in the field of specific needs and anyone interested in the theme, allowing them to take stock of the achievements and discuss priorities and actions to plan for the coming years.
• “Special needs” sports and action day on 14 May on the Place d'Armes, with information stands, demonstrations and workshops offered by associations in the area of ​​special needs.
• Roll & Run on 28 May 2022 on the Glacis field, an inclusive race organized as part of the ING Night Marathon Luxembourg in collaboration with step by step, the Back to Sport association and various associations in the field of specific needs in Greater -Duchy.
• Dinners in the dark on 3, 5, 19 and 24 May as well as 1 June in various restaurants in Luxembourg-city, the participants being guided by blind people through the meal.
• Exhibition from 25 April to 19 May at the Grand Théâtre, presenting the actions and objectives of many associations in the field of specific needs and raising awareness among the general public about the importance of their work and the consideration of the needs of the people concerned. The opening will take place on 25 April at 18:00.
• UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE – Luxembourg Old Town and Fortifications guided tours on 28 April, 8 and 12 May through different areas of the city, aimed at both people with specific needs and newcomers.
• Visit-conference "Management of UNESCO heritage in Luxembourg" on 29 May through the city, explaining the actions and measures taken by the State and the City of Luxembourg to preserve the authenticity and integrity of the site of universal value exceptional "Luxembourg, old quarters and fortifications" as well as the criteria that allowed the city to be included in the World Heritage register (accessible to all).
• Guided tour of the Villa Vauban, 15 May, as part of Museum Day, accessible to all.
• Round table “What is the status of inclusion in sports and leisure activities?" on 30 May at the Bonnevoie cultural center, making it possible to take stock of the existing situation, to give examples of inclusive activities, to highlight the difficulties encountered by the organizers of inclusive activities, to determine the demands to be the attention of political authorities to carry out inclusive activities and to encourage youth centers and sports and leisure clubs to open up to people with specific needs (organisation: ZEFI asbl)
• “SEP-sans frontières: Chanter le gospel ensemble” on 30 May at the BGL auditorium in Luxembourg, inviting spectators to spend a moment of relaxation, laughter and good humor (organisation: “Multiple sclerosis Lëtzebuerg”, “Deutsche Multiple Sklerose Gesellschaft”, EME Foundation, as part of World Multiple Sclerosis Day).
• “Inclusion” gala: art and culture without barriers, on 4 June at the Conservatoire, a show of dance, music, theater and poetry (with the participation of the Luxembourg soprano Noémie Desquiotz-Sunnen, ZAK-Zesummen aktiv, the Dadofonic collective, DreamTeam21, the majorettes of Luxembourg and many others), followed by a wine reception organized in conjunction with several associations in the area of ​​special needs. Live broadcast on www.vdl.lu.

Complete programme and additional information

Brochures with the complete programme and all the practical information (addresses and exact times of the events, language of the conferences and visits and translation offer, deadlines for registrations and translation requests, methods of participation, etc.) are available from the Integration Service and specific needs, at the Bierger-Center, at the Town Hall, at the reception of the Rocade, on the Luxembourg city's website (semaines.vdl.lu), as well as with all the partners.

The organisation of events and meetings, such as the Special Needs Awareness Weeks, is an essential element of the implementation of the City of Luxembourg's policy on the integration of people with special needs and awareness raising. of the general public as to the needs of the persons concerned.

For all its efforts in favor of a city for all – whether in the areas of public space, transport infrastructure, public services or information and communication – the City of Luxembourg has view of awarding the 1st prize of the Access City Award 2022 by the European Commission and is committed to continuing to work, together with its many partners, in favor of an inclusive city without barriers.

The Participatory Committee and the Integration and Special Needs Service

The work philosophy is to involve the people and associations concerned as well as all the services of the City of Luxembourg in the realisation of projects to continually improve the services offered to all citizens with a view to a "city for all ".

The establishment of the Participatory Committee and its working groups allows direct and effective involvement of the people concerned in all the projects; those interested in participating can contact the Integration and Specific Needs Department.

The service is also a place of contact for the people and associations concerned.

In addition to awareness-raising actions, other actions and services are offered as well, including:

• working and reflection groups within the framework of the Participatory Committee
• spaces for people with specific needs during festive activities and events
• accessibility of the actions proposed by the City
• various "design for all" fittings
• German sign language course
• help and support in finding suitable solutions.