Inclusive volunteering

One of the innovations of the festival the provision for a mixed voluntary body of people with and without disabilities. This group of inclusive volunteering, as it is called in the literature was established on the occasion of the institution of the Festival and its priorities, and consists of students (undergraduate, postgraduate) and graduates of the Education and Social Studies Department, students of EKEK (of the former Model Industrial Group), of OAED (Lakkia, Thessaloniki), the Down Thessaloniki Association and the Thessaloniki Special Education Center, as well as other, individually disabled participants. The benefits of inclusive volunteering for people with and without disabilities have already been highlighted by international research and include, among other things, improving self-esteem and self-awareness, reducing feelings of alienation, increasing maturity and responsibility, and strengthening social, professional and practical skills.