Toni Bacvarovski

Open the Windows

Open the Windows is the only organization in Macedonia that promotes assistive technology "to initiate and facilitate active inclusion of all people in the contemporary world." The organization was established in 2005 and is based in Skopje. On the one hand, as a community-based service provider, Open the Windows supports the personal development of children and adults with various disabilities by enabling access to computers, internet and assistive technology. The individualized support ranges from improving one's cognitive functions, communication and/or socialization, to accommodating users' educational or employment needs. The organization has served over 300 persons since its establishment. On the other hand, within its projects, the organization promotes assistive technology through capacity building, awareness raising, research, and information and knowledge dissemination. Open the Windows is well-connected and has proven capability for cooperating with actors across the public, civic and business sector: The organization has good cooperation record with the Ministry of Education and Science and other educational institutions, and the Ministry of Information Society and Administration. It is a member of European-level disability or ICT-related network associations (such as the European Association of Service Providers for Persons with Disabilities, Telecentre Europe, and ENTELIS). For its work in the field of education, Open the Windows received the biannual ERSTE Foundation Award for Social Integration in 2013, among nearly 2,000 applicants from 13 countries from Central and Eastern Europe. In 2014, the organization won the Unite-IT Digital Inclusion Award in the category of Vulnerable groups at risk of exclusion. the same year the organization won the annual Award for outstanding scientific and research achievements in the field of special education and rehabilitation from the Professor Ljupco Ajdinski Foundation.