NUJU First Secretary Lina Kushch: “HOME: Children’s Inclusive Media Studio project is one of the vivid examples of Ukrainians’ superpower”

The presentation of the results of the cultural and artistic project titled HOME: Children’s Inclusive Media Studio, partnered among others by the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), took place in the premise of the Ukrinform news agency.

The project aims to develop a barrier-free society in the Ukrainian community, providing equal access to cultural resources and opportunities for the self-realization of children with disabilities, promotion of children’s creativity, and achievements of inclusive art in Ukraine through media. The project organized by the Veselka TV children’s public internet television and radio non-governmental organization with the financial support of the Ukrainian Cultural Fund within the framework of the Culture Without Barriers grant program organically combined cultural and creative industries, audiovisual, audio, and visual arts with social and educational spheres. During the four months of project implementation, 120 children with disabilities aged 6 to 17 from 14 settlements became direct participants in the project. Among them are displaced children and children from the territories affected by the armed aggression of the Russian Federation: Kyiv, Vasylkiv, Vyshhorod, Hostomel (Kyiv Region), Kakhovka (the Kherson Region), Donetsk, Bakhmut, Lyman, and Bilozerka, and Pokrovsk Districts of the Donetsk Region, Sievierodonetsk, Starobilsk, and Roveniok (Luhansk Region), Simferopol and Kharkiv.

Welcoming the participants in the project’s presentation, the First Secretary of NUJU, Lina Kushch, recalled that the NUJU had been happy to support the initiatives of the younger generation for five years. She drew attention to the fact that the media from all over Ukraine have covered the progress of this project. And she said that one of a newspaper and online media editors said: “Thanks for giving us the opportunity to share with our readers the wonderful news about the project, which demonstrates that Ukrainians are united, that they support each other.” According to Lina Kushch, the unity of the Ukrainians and the fact that every person is important became seen clearly against the background of the full-scale war.

In general, children took part in various inclusive cultural and artistic events. These were creative master classes and classes in public speaking, acting, journalism and cinematography, blogging, creative workshops in animation and ART creativity, as well as rehearsals, filming, sound recordings, exhibitions of creative children’s works in original artistic techniques, public presentation events, etc. In the children’s inclusive media studio, children tried themselves as TV and radio presenters, TV journalists, animators, actors, cameramen, photographers, artists, and bloggers.

Deputy director of the Department of Culture of the executive body of the Kyiv City Council, Volodymyr Motsiuk, assured that the department is ready to assist in organizing barrier-free events because the capital of Ukraine should be an example for holding such events.

All cultural products created under the project will be distributed in the near future utilizing the media space and have already appeared in free access on the Internet on the official YouTube channel of Veselka TV.

NUJU Information Service