Become a Partner
Support Caritas in its Initiative for Self-Determined Inclusion! Your local Caritas organisation or an institution of Caritas in your area is looking forward to your interest and involvement.
More information and contacts are available at our office in Brussels:
Deutscher Caritasverband e. V.
Hauptvertretung Brüssel
Rue de Pascale 4-6
B-1040 Bruxelles
euvertretung@caritas.de
Would you like further information?
- Download: Inclusion flyer
- www.teilhabeinitiative.de (only german)
The Initiative of Caritas for Self-Determined Inclusion
During the three years from 2009 to 2011, Caritas is focusing on self-determined inclusion. With this initiative, Caritas wants to contribute effective to giving everybody the chance to lead an emancipated life within our democratic civil society. The principle of self-determined inclusion is based on our fundamental Christian values of dignity and equity.
This initiative of Caritas to draw the attention to inclusion blends in with the European Year 2010 for combating poverty and social exclusion. In addition, Caritas offers further approaches for solving these problems.
Inclusion Means
- taking into account the individual situation of a person
- creating surroundings that make inclusion possible
- integrating the abilities and resources of persons affected
- enabling a person to lead a self-determined life
- taking participation and active involvement serious
- showing solidarity towards vulnerable members of our society
- reduce social, cultural, and economic barriers
The Absence of Inclusion
- Poverty Limits Inclusion
Poverty not only limits the access to material goods but also to education and culture. Over the past years, it has turned into an inherent part of German society and has increased the social exclusion of the poor. 87 percent of the people living in Germany only know about poverty through the media and daily street scene. - Old Age Limits Inclusion
Advanced age entails limitations in mobility and social environment. In case nursing care is required, a pro-found feeling of losing one’s own self-determination arises. Enabling self-controlled inclusion is a challenge to society. Old age is more than just a burden. We need the wisdom and the real life experience of the elderly. - Disabilities Limit Inclusion
According to the UN convention, nobody is to be excluded from public life due to his or her disability. However, this has not yet been fully implemented into everyday life. All too often, people are defined by their disabilities thus reducing the wealth of their resources and possibilities of inclusion.
Initiating Inclusion through Action
Self-Determined Inclusion Requires
- laws that expand the options of the individual
- structures that are open and flexible
- people committed to making inclusion a success
We as Caritas Will
- have our say in matters of welfare policy
- implement self-determined inclusion as a distinction of our work
- support our own institutions in increasing the possibilities of inclusion
- enable inclusion together with local parishes
- strengthen the co-operation with self-help organisations
- increase through our work self-determined inclusion for persons affected
- spread examples of success in order to give new inputs
- develop guides that motivate to become politically active
- get involved in the European Year 2010