Tomsk hosted a motivational meeting held as part the inclusive You Can Do Anything! project
10 july 2023
As part of the meeting, Vladimir Vaskevich, the author of the Traveling in the Dark blog shared his story of how, despite being blind, he had managed to travel to more than 20 countries around the world and visit more than 60 Russian regions while keeping his great sense of humor.
Vladimir Vaskevich, author of the Traveling in the Dark blog:
Meetings such as this are definitely important, especially for those people who have had to embrace disability most recently. I lost my sight as a child, so it's hard to compare myself to the way I was "before" and what I became "after". However, having made my numerous trips and having experienced very different situations, I can say with certainty that a sense of humor and mindfulness can be maintained at all times and anywhere. Our outlook on our lives has a great impact on the way we live. I hope that I was able to properly convey this idea to the meeting’s attendees.
The dialogue about representation of disability on social media was continued by the team of the interregional Inclusive Resource Center (Alexei Trantsev and Olga Lifanova) who presented their City of Opportunities blog. The blog’s core component is its training course with home assignments emphasizing various nuances of building a personal brand by someone with a disability, and focusing on effective tools for interacting with one’s audience and on promoting inclusive communities on the VKontakte social network.
Elena Snezhko, Head of the Formula for Good Deeds social investment program:
We have already held a total of eight such meetings under this project with four of them – the ones in Kazan, Nizhnekamsk, Perm and Tomsk – taking place this year alone. Time and again, our speakers have been demonstrating that there are no real barriers to leading an active life, even more so in virtual space. In Tomsk, the emphasis was on the role of social networks, which explains the invitation extended simultaneously to Vladimir Vaskevich and the team of the City of Opportunities. I am sure that those Tomsk residents who came to the Boiling Point venue today will be remembering this meeting for a long time.
The event was open to all, and it was fully accessible by low-mobility attendees.
Daria Belyaeva, meeting participant:
Many people with disabilities do not always realize how to use their status for promoting themselves. One’s ability to find employment and to lead an active life depends not so much on their specific type of disability, as on that person's mindset. Getting stuck behind the four walls of your place, you will never see the opportunities that are out there. I got very interested in the idea of training for keeping a blog, and that’s why I will be happy to join the City of Opportunities to develop myself.
Evgeny Samoilov, Chairman of Tomskneftekhim’s Youth Council:
My impressions of the meeting are very positive! When you get exposed to the personal stories of people who are blind or have to use a wheelchair to move around, you get an incredible energy boost from them. Prior to the meeting, I’d have found it very hard to imagine that one could ski without being able to see, for example. And yet, people with such disabilities refuse to lose their taste for living, they live a full life, instead of just surviving. After hearing such stories, you begin to realize that every person can live a fulfilling and exciting life, and you want to be able to do even more.