EKNO 20th Anniversary Conference: “Every Young Person Matters”

The Estonian Deaf Youth Organisation (EKNO) is celebrating its 20th anniversary and invites you to its anniversary conference! Every young person matters. We need to talk about both the future and the situation today. Young people are not only shaping the future; they are members of society right now. Their voices, experiences and opinions must be heard and taken into account.

You can look forward to engaging workshops and discussions, inclusive activities, good humour, and the chance to share ideas and experiences. Come meet old and new friends and celebrate EKNO’s 20th anniversary together!

What’s in store?
• Interesting workshops and discussions designed from the perspective of deaf young people
• FlowTV entertainment programme
• Involvement, cooperation and development among community members
• Fun games and activities

Workshop topics

The impact of being deaf on mental health (Aleluya Peña, deaf psychologist)
We will talk about situations where the communication and practices of the hearing majority do not take deaf people into account. Having to explain things repeatedly, advocate for access and cope with being left out can cause stress and exhaustion. We will discuss how to recognise your limits, look after your mental health, seek support and stand up for your needs.

Empowering deaf young people: voice and influence in the hearing majority (Lubna Mehdi, principal of Ål folkehøgskole og kurssenter for døve)
We will focus on how to empower deaf young people so they can express their opinions, have a say and influence decisions in the hearing majority. We will discuss what opportunities and support young people need for their voices to be taken into account and for them to initiate change themselves.

Language resources and artificial intelligence from the perspective of deaf communities (Professor Christian Rathmann and visiting researcher Péter Zalán Herbszt-Romanek)
We will discuss the development of language resources and artificial intelligence from the perspective of deaf communities. We will talk about how these affect sign languages, their study and deaf communities, and what needs to be considered in terms of accessibility, community involvement and safety.

Deafblind design and approaches in deaf communities (Pere Cantenys Gómez, head of the youth section of the World Federation of the Deafblind (WFDB))
We will talk about how to take deafblind people’s needs into account when designing activities and organising deaf communities. We will discuss solutions and practical approaches that support deafblind people’s communication, mobility and participation.

📅 Event schedule
16:00–16:30 ☕ Registration and coffee break
16:30–18:00 💬 Workshops: first session
18:00–18:30 ☕ Coffee break
18:30–20:00 💬 Workshops: second session
20:00–21:00 🍽️ Dinner
21:00–21:30 🎭 FlowTV show
21:30–22:30 🎬 Games and activities
22:30–23:00 🎭 FlowTV show
23:30–00:00 🏆 Games and activities
00:00–00:30 🎉 Farewell

Who is the event for?
Young people and anyone who would like to gain new experiences, share ideas and be part of a community are welcome.

The event will be interpreted from International Sign and Estonian Sign Language into Estonian, and vice versa.

The event is supported by the Ministry of Education and Research and Erasmus+.

Come celebrate EKNO’s 20th anniversary and make new memories together with us. Your presence and voice matter!
See you on 5 December! 🎉