The DCUM project is motivated by the increasing number of people with dementia in the EU, and the great potential in the use of culture and cultural activities as a new approach to create social inclusion of people with dementia in the local community. For the cultural institutions to be able to contribute to social inclusion it requires special conditions and new competencies of the cultural mediators. The target group of the DCUM project is cultural mediators who convey cultural content aimed at people with dementia. E.g. trained guides at museums, librarians who mediate literature and cultural events for people with dementia, instructors in civil society organizations such as dance clubs and sports clubs as well as health care staff with interest in integrating cultural activities into working with the end user. The main objective of the DCUM project is to create better social inclusion of people with dementia, through training of cultural mediators working in cultural institutions such as libraries, museums, civil society organizations such as dance clubs and sports clubs and i the healthcare system. In order to reach the main objective, the DCUM project will produce 3 concrete intellectual outputs, and 3 partners will be responsible for the coordination of an intellectual output. IO1 - DCUM Toolkit for Cultural Mediation IO2 - DCUM Didactic Training Material for cultural mediators IO3 - DCUM Recommendations on Dementia in Cultural Mediation The DCUM project will be implemented by 5 partners from 4 EU countries; DK, BE, NL, and ES. The project has a strong partnership with a broad range of different professional backgrounds and diverse organizational forms, all with the same mission of contributing to a healthier and happier life of people living with dementia. All partners contribute to the project with a huge and relevant local and national network of associated partners within the areas of dementia, healthy ageing, research, expertise on learning and education, culture and various cultural institutions. Keywords of the management philosophy and methodologies are sense based approaches to methods in cultural mediation, didactic planning af competence development and training as well as sharing of good practices and mutual inspiration on new practices. To ensure the European added value of the project and create optimal opportunities for transfer of results, the project will be supported by a European Reference Group consisting of important actors within the field of the project, such as experts on dementia, experts on cultural mediation, representatives from the end user group and other relevant stakeholders. The DCUM project contains a range of different dissemination activities in order to ensure broad knowledge and opportunities for further uptake and transfer beyond the partnership. These activities are 5 local Multiplier Events, local knowledge sharing between cultural mediators and sharing of the DCUM Toolkit and DCUM Didactic Training Material to relevant local and national institutions through partners wide ranging network.
Objects and goals for the DCUM-project: 1. Support and create competence development of Cultural mediators 2. Create a European Toolkit for dissemination of specific cultural areas – aimed at people living with dementia. 3. Create a supporting Didactic Traning Material for cultural mediators on how to use the DCUM Toolkit including everyday use of the presented cultural activities. 4. Establish a European Reference Group in the cross fields of dementia and culture. 5. Produce Recommendations aimed at different stakeholders and levels of society on the future activities and needs in the fields of culture and dementia 6. Give open access to other cultural organizations and mediators outside the project to easy-to-use tools for cultural activities and training materials to enable them to conduct cultural activities for people living with dementia. 7. Contribute to the development of solutions to create better posibilities to live a good and joyfull life despite dementia. Bring different partners together to create innovative solutions.
The DCUM project was motivated by the increasing number of people living with dementia in the EU, and the great potential in the use of culture and cultural activities as a new approach to create social inclusion of people with dementia in the local community. For the cultural institutions to be able to contribute to social inclusion, it required special conditions and new competencies of the cultural mediators. The target group of the DCUM project was the cultural mediators who convey cultural content aimed at people with dementia. The main objective of the DCUM project was to create better social inclusion of people with dementia, through training of cultural mediators working in cultural institutions. In order to reach the main objective, the DCUM project wished to produce 3 concrete intellectual outputs. A Toolkit for Cultural Mediation, Didactic Training Material for cultural mediators and a collection of Recommendations on Dementia in Cultural Mediation. Keywords for the project was social inclusion of people living with dementia, competence development of cultural mediators and open access to all material produced in the project to ensure the widest possible dessimination and use of content across Europe and the World.