Adaptive technology for visually impaired - Seminar

On August 31. 2004, in Hotel "Slavija" - Belgrade (capital of Serbia and Monte Negro), the Serbian Association of Visually Impaired Intellectuals and artists (UIUOVS) organized the seminar including an exhibition of computerizing- and others technical devices for blind and low-sighted persons, and two-session round-table discussion.
Handy Tech Elektronik GmbH from Germany, Alfanum D.O.O. and SZTR "Olimp" from Serbia and Monte Negro took part at the exhibition.
Handy Tech is well-known producer of high-quality Braille displays with multiple capacities. SZTR "Olimp" is a new trading-crafts shop for technical equipment for visually impaired. It offers products from personal home usage to braille displays, braille embossers and speech synthesizers. This products comprise products of the companies: Handy Tech, Caretec, Index Braille, Rosasoft and its own products and services.
AlfaNum offered its speech synthesizer for Serbian language.

The first and the second sessions of round-table forum, moderated by Mr. Bratimir Joksimovicand Mr. Nenad Radenkovic, brought a few interesting reports and wealthy and challenging discussions.

Two main topics were in our focus:

1. The New adaptive technology for visually impaired in legislation
2. How to obtain good ways and opportunities for blind and low-sighted people to get more easily to the new adaptive devices.

The seminar, whose slogan was "Step forward", opened at 10:00. Mr. Thomas Nicolaj from Germany handed over to worthful donation to our Association by wish those goods come to hands of visually impaired users in Serbia. He collected and donated goods of the following donators:

1. Handy Tech Gmbh (Horb - Germany)
2. Caretec Gmbh (Vienna - Austria)
3. Multitech gGmbh (Dresden - Germany)

Here is the more precise outlook of the whole day seminar:

Bratimir Joksimovic, M.S., M.A. (President of the Serbian Association of Visually Impaired Intellectuals and Artists) opened the seminar. Mr. Thomas Nicolaj (leader of tandem-hilfen tour) and Mr. Siegfried Kipke )CEO of Handy Tech Elektronik) addressed to audience as well.

1. opening the exhibition, dipl. ing. Siegfried Kipke (Handy Tech Elektronik GmbH, Germany)

topics and speakers in round-table forum

1. Legal regulations regarding to provision of the aids for the blind in Serbia txt_serb by Master of law Nenad Radenkovic, (UIUOVS - Niš, Serbia)
2. Rights of blind and low-sighted on adaptive aids in Croatia doc_serb by dipl. lawyer Jelena Stojanovic (UIUOVS - Smederevo, Serbia)
3. Rights of blind and low-sighted on adaptive aids in Slovenia txt_serb by Master of Literature Science Ranko Buric (The Serbian federation of blind - the Belgrade organization, Serbia)
4. Rights of blind and low-sighted on adaptive aids in Sweden doc_eng by dipl. tiflo-defectologist Julijana Arsenovic-Vasiljevic (Office for employment - Uppsala, Sweden)
5. Tactile substitution for human vision doc_eng
   Tactile substitution for human vision PowerPoint presentation in Russian Tactile substitution for human vision PowerPoint presentation in English by Olga Belozerskaya, coordinator and Natalia Nevyazhskaya, director of project "Tactile Vision" (Regional public foundation for assistance to blind and visually Impaired children and adults "VERESK", Moscow, Russian Federation)
6. Free software for visually impaired users txt_eng by Vedran Vucic (President of the Linux Center steering board - Belgrade, Serbia)
7. Role of new technology in professional rehabilitation and employing the visually impaired persons rtf_serb by dipl. psychologist Nedeljka Lozajic (UIUOVS- Belgrade, Serbia)
8. Electronic books for blind in Serbia doc_eng by Master of English literature Tihomir Nikolic (SSS GOB)
9. How blind and low-sighted people get the assistive equipment in Germany, (MP3_Eng-Serb 1.73 MB) by Siegfried Kipke, (CEO of Handy Tech Elektronik - Horb, Germany
10. How more easily and under more favorable conditions to provide adaptive computers' and other technical aids for visually impaired people doc_serb by Master of anthropology Bratimir Joksimovic (UIUOVS - Belgrade, Serbia)

We thanks all who took part in our seminar. There were about 50 individuals at round-table forum, many of them actively discussed those important topics.
We especially thank all participants coming from abroad: Attila Varro from Budapest, Julijana from Sweden, Olga and Nataliya from Russia.

We owe our gratefulness to Ms. Karmen Nenadic from the Croatian Union of the blind and to Mr. Bogdan Saksida from Slovenian Union of the Blind who sent us information about adaptive technology for the visually impaired in their countries' legislation. Reports given at the seminar were made according to their information.

We invited authorities from our five ministeries of Republic of Serbia. None came to our seminar with an excuse that all of them were on vacation.
We were glad we had opportunity to greet two councilors from our National Office for Employment.
The Belgrade City Assembley had a delegate at the round-table who came, as she said, "privately".
We very thank all people who came from throughout Serbia to visit the exhibition. More than 200 visually impaired people visited the exhibition and touch and tried computer's and other technical aids.

We truly thank to volunteers who selfishlessly gave their time and put their energy in organizing this meetings, they are by name: Ms. Tereza Pinter, Ms. Daniela Ristic, Ms. Dragana Guduric, Mr. Vasilije Milicevic and Branko Novoselac.

Excuse us we do not have yet all reports translated in both Serbian and English. We hope it will be on a day when our government understand we are seriously working on important subjects.