At the turn of June and July 2025, the city of Brno (Czech Republic) hosted a unique transnational training course within the Erasmus+ project DEAP – Nurturing Personal Development and Empowerment of Young People with Visual Impairment through Arts Education.
The training, titled “Harmony in Motion – Empowerment through Inclusive Dance”, was organised as part of Work Package 3, focused on capacity building in arts education for youth workers and educators working with young people with visual impairments
The six-day programme brought together 21 participants from five European countries – Italy, Czech Republic, Poland, Cyprus and Sweden. The training focused on dance and movement as tools for empowerment, inclusion and personal development, combining theory, embodied practice and reflection.
Participants explored the foundations of working with people with visual impairments, inclusive communication strategies, sensory orientation, and ethical aspects of arts education. A strong emphasis was placed on experiential learning – through movement, rhythm, sound, touch and spatial awareness.
Practical workshops led by experienced dance educators introduced inclusive dance pedagogy, partner work, guided improvisation and collaborative choreography adapted for mixed-ability groups.
A highlight of the training was the session at Divadlo BARKA, an accessible theatre space, where participants worked with contemporary inclusive dance practices and reflected on accessibility in professional artistic contexts. Throughout the week, the programme fostered trust, emotional expression and intercultural exchange.
Evaluation results confirmed the high quality and strong impact of the training. Participants reported increased confidence, deeper understanding of inclusive methodologies and strong motivation to transfer the acquired skills to their local contexts.
The Brno training laid the groundwork for a growing European network of inclusive dance practitioners and directly inspired the next phase of DEAP activities – local workshops with young people with visual impairments.