EU project “Culture without Barriers”: Final visit to Poland

From 2021 till 2023, kubia was a transnational partner of the German-Polish EU project “Culture without barriers”. The aim of the project was to develop a model framework for the analysis, planning and implementation of accessibility at publicly funded cultural institutions in Poland. The German project team was led by kubia staff member Annette Ziegert and supported by Annalena Knors (Corporate Inclusion) and Lisette Reuter (Un-Label). Partners on the Polish side were the Polish Ministry of Culture and the NGO “Culture without barriers”. The project promoter was the State Fund for the Rehabilitation of People with Disabilities in Poland, PFRON.

After a first version of the model framework was developed, 164 cultural institutions from all over Poland, including libraries, theatres, concert halls and museums, were selected in an application process in 2022. The funding recipients had the opportunity to test the model framework for one year and to implement exemplary accessibility measures in their organisations. The model phase was accompanied by extensive networking and training events. The last phase of the project was dedicated to the evaluation of the model projects, which will be incorporated into the final version of the model. The was published in 2024.

In September, Annalena Knors, Lisette Reuter and Annette Ziegert travelled to Warsaw together with kubia director Almuth Fricke for the final talks. During the final visit, they had the opportunity to get to know three funding recipients from the test phase of the project and to gain insights into their work: the Nowy Teatr in Warsaw as well as the City Museum and one of the municipal cultural centres in Łódź.

The German partners were impressed by the high quality of the implementation of accessibility measures, which are accompanied by the development of relationships with people with disabilities in the cultural organisations and an intensive feedback culture.

The final talks were marked by great hospitality, just like the first visit of Team kubia to Warsaw in late summer 2021.