Български
Project S.M.I.L.E.
#SMILE receives prestigious SALTO Award
05.10.2023
On October 5, 2023, in Lublin, the European Youth Capital for 2023, the annual SALTO Awards ceremony was held. Representing the Bulgarian Sports Development Association (#SMILE coordinator), Yoanna Dochevska, the chairperson of the organization, attended and accepted the award. The SALTO Awards aim to recognize outstanding work and inspire young people, European citizens, decision-makers, Erasmus+ program candidates, and European Solidarity Corps candidates to have a greater impact.
The categories for the 2023 SALTO Awards were:
Digital Transformation
Environment and Climate Change Action (new!)
Inclusion and Diversity
Participation in Democratic Life
Solidarity and Volunteering
Special Category: Competence Development
The #SMILE initiative, co-funded by the European Union's Erasmus+ program, aims to explore the connection between sports and inclusion in an innovative way by providing international participation opportunities in sports activities for individuals with intellectual disabilities. The #SMILE project team implemented various national and international activities, supporting European identity and the development of competencies for individuals with intellectual disabilities in Bulgaria and Croatia. These efforts were recognized with a special award in the "Competence Development" category at the SALTO 2023 European Awards.
The special category "Competence Development" supports lifelong learning and encourages the development of competencies by involving various stakeholders in the field of education and youth policies. SALTO directs public attention to the impact of European youth programs in supporting lifelong learning and encourages competency development by including the perspective of different stakeholders. The awards jury sought inspiring projects where youth, youth workers, organization representatives, and other stakeholders are encouraged to reflect on their educational journey and competency development. When evaluating the projects, the selection committee expressed particular interest in practices and approaches supporting learning processes and the development of young participants and youth workers.
The special category "Competence Development" considered proposals in all categories (200 projects for 2023) and distinguished one project that stood out in terms of quality and activities. The chairman of the jury for this category, Dick Smit, shared: "The SMILE project was unanimously selected by the committee because it is one of the few projects in Europe that actively involves individuals with intellectual disabilities in mobility and provides them with an active platform for inclusion and competency development."
Watch the ceremony video: https://youtu.be/2zKYRIv6xzo?si=1mogVAxq40R7ujsk
To achieve #SMILE goals, the following results were developed:
• #SMILE Good Practices Handbook: https://inclusivesport.org/2023/06/13/good-practices-smile-toolkit/;
• Empowered sports experts and organizations to utilize the tools developed within the #SMILE project.
• International #SMILE Sports Event: Brought individuals with intellectual disabilities from Bulgaria and Croatia together after conducting training sessions in each country.
Through project activities, #SMILE team aimed to enable individuals with intellectual disabilities to:
• Discover the power of sports as a tool for inclusion through personal experience.
• Create, in collaboration with project partners, a Good Practices Handbook for the Inclusion of individuals with Intellectual Disabilities.
• Participate in the international #SMILE sports event.
• Engage in local-level training sessions for individuals with intellectual disabilities to trigger a cascade effect.
• Transfer good practices among project partners.
The #SMILE project aligns entirely with the horizontal objectives of the Erasmus+ program, which co-funds this initiative, aiming to ensure inclusion and diversity in all areas of education, training, youth, and sports. This is the core idea of the project – participation in international activities for a with fewer opportunities. The project is also in line with the priority of promoting participation in sports and physical activity, as all activities implemented by the SMILE project are geared towards the sustainable inclusion of individuals with intellectual disabilities in sports activities at the local, national, and international levels.
#SMILE is executed by the Bulgarian Sports Development Association and the Rijeka Sport Association for People with Disabilities - organizations providing opportunities for the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in Bulgaria and Croatia. More information about the #SMILE initiative is available on the project website: www.inclusivesport.org
Digital Transformation
Environment and Climate Change Action (new!)
Inclusion and Diversity
Participation in Democratic Life
Solidarity and Volunteering
Special Category: Competence Development
The #SMILE initiative, co-funded by the European Union's Erasmus+ program, aims to explore the connection between sports and inclusion in an innovative way by providing international participation opportunities in sports activities for individuals with intellectual disabilities. The #SMILE project team implemented various national and international activities, supporting European identity and the development of competencies for individuals with intellectual disabilities in Bulgaria and Croatia. These efforts were recognized with a special award in the "Competence Development" category at the SALTO 2023 European Awards.
The special category "Competence Development" supports lifelong learning and encourages the development of competencies by involving various stakeholders in the field of education and youth policies. SALTO directs public attention to the impact of European youth programs in supporting lifelong learning and encourages competency development by including the perspective of different stakeholders. The awards jury sought inspiring projects where youth, youth workers, organization representatives, and other stakeholders are encouraged to reflect on their educational journey and competency development. When evaluating the projects, the selection committee expressed particular interest in practices and approaches supporting learning processes and the development of young participants and youth workers.
The special category "Competence Development" considered proposals in all categories (200 projects for 2023) and distinguished one project that stood out in terms of quality and activities. The chairman of the jury for this category, Dick Smit, shared: "The SMILE project was unanimously selected by the committee because it is one of the few projects in Europe that actively involves individuals with intellectual disabilities in mobility and provides them with an active platform for inclusion and competency development."
Watch the ceremony video: https://youtu.be/2zKYRIv6xzo?si=1mogVAxq40R7ujsk
To achieve #SMILE goals, the following results were developed:
• #SMILE Good Practices Handbook: https://inclusivesport.org/2023/06/13/good-practices-smile-toolkit/;
• Empowered sports experts and organizations to utilize the tools developed within the #SMILE project.
• International #SMILE Sports Event: Brought individuals with intellectual disabilities from Bulgaria and Croatia together after conducting training sessions in each country.
Through project activities, #SMILE team aimed to enable individuals with intellectual disabilities to:
• Discover the power of sports as a tool for inclusion through personal experience.
• Create, in collaboration with project partners, a Good Practices Handbook for the Inclusion of individuals with Intellectual Disabilities.
• Participate in the international #SMILE sports event.
• Engage in local-level training sessions for individuals with intellectual disabilities to trigger a cascade effect.
• Transfer good practices among project partners.
The #SMILE project aligns entirely with the horizontal objectives of the Erasmus+ program, which co-funds this initiative, aiming to ensure inclusion and diversity in all areas of education, training, youth, and sports. This is the core idea of the project – participation in international activities for a with fewer opportunities. The project is also in line with the priority of promoting participation in sports and physical activity, as all activities implemented by the SMILE project are geared towards the sustainable inclusion of individuals with intellectual disabilities in sports activities at the local, national, and international levels.
#SMILE is executed by the Bulgarian Sports Development Association and the Rijeka Sport Association for People with Disabilities - organizations providing opportunities for the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in Bulgaria and Croatia. More information about the #SMILE initiative is available on the project website: www.inclusivesport.org
