Imagine a crowded place in your city – a park for instance. Children, dogs, people, bikers. There are probably curb and/or wheelchair ramps nearby or around it to facilitate mothers and fathers’ movement with strollers and others. Now imagine that those ramps are a little bit steeper than necessary. Thus they become pulling power for all teenagers with rollers and skateboards but for parents with strollers and people with disabilities in wheelchairs they become an everyday nightmare.

Bulgarian Fund for Women is going on an urban expedition in Plovdiv to understand how everybody lives, what are their senses in the urban spaces, how men and women, young and elderly, parents and children feel on the streets, subways, public squares. On 2^nd and 3^rd of June BFW will conduct the so called “exploratory walks” in the districts of Proslav and Trakiya, aiming to explore the daily experiences of people in the city, to make them see the urban spaces through a different perspective, to identify problematic urban zones and possible solutions to improve the public spaces.

What to expect?

The exploratory walks will be led by the international experts from the French organization Womenability and by the trained specialist on local level. The walks are an innovative instrument for empowerment and mobilization of local communities, for seeking creative solutions to improve the urban spaces and for big fun.

Expect a 2-hour urban expedition where you can meet new friends, have fun, see the city in a new way and most importantly –  change it for the better.

How, when and where to join us?

The walks will take place on 2^nd and 3^rd of June 2018 in Plovdiv in the districts of Proslav and Trakiya.

4 walks in total will be conducted and because of the specifics of this approach 2 will be for women only and 2 will be open for all. We expect them to last for around two – two hours and a half.

You can register for one out of 4 walks until 28th  May 2018 here or fill out and send this form at office@bgfundforwomen.org . You can also register by directly calling +359894337948 – Rada Elenkova or at +359893530450 – Nevena Bojilova. The participation is free of charge and we will be contacting you additionally to confirm the registration.

Those under 18 years old of age willing to join the walks will need to come with their adult attendants who will also be participants.

Exploratory walks schedule:

Saturday, 2^nd of June:

Walk 1: Proslav, from 11:00 till 13:00 (13:30) starting point – in front of Community Center “Nikola Vaptsarov – 1928”, (42 Elin Pelin Str.) – open for registration for all

Walk 2: Trakiya, from 18.00 till 20.00 (20.30), starting point – in front of Khan Krum monument (Syedinenie Str.), between  „St. Sofroniy Vrachanski“ school and 05 RPS Plovdiv (next to bar Encanto) – open for women only

Walk 3: Proslav, from 18:00 till 20:00 (20:30) starting point – in front of Community Center „Nikola Vaptsarov – 1928“, (42 Elin Pelin Str.) – open for women only

Sunday, 3^rd of June:

Walk 4: Trakiya, from from 11:00 till 13:00 (13:30), starting point – in front of Khan Krum monument (Syedinenie Str.), between „St. Sofroniy Vrachanski“ school and 05 RPS Plovdiv (next to bar Encanto) – open for registration for all

*We advise people taking part in the night walks on 2^nd of June to have in mind that public transportation is available until 21:00. Please, plan for alternative transportation.

The best?

After conducting the walks, the Womenability experts will prepare a specialized report based on the participants’ impressions on issues and problematic zones in the city – formed during the urban expeditions and pointed out in specialized questionnairs, and Bulgarian and international artists will be invited to transform the urban space by creating site-specific art installations in Trakiya and Proslav, based on actual recommendations and needs identified by the citizens who had taken part in the initiatives.

You wanna know the best part: you are changing the city!

About the initiative:

The exploratory walks will be happening under the project “Sense of a City: an inclusive, safe and sustainable Plovdiv” of the Bulgarian Fund for Women, as part of the program of Plovdiv – European Capital of culture 2019 , in partnership with Gender Alternatives Foundation and Association “Consultancy Bureau Progress 7” and  Womenability. The project offers a model for sustainable development based on a bottom-up approach, where the citizens are empowered to identify problems and to offer solutions improving the urban environment. 

The number of participants is limited, register now!

For more information you can visit www.city.bgfundforwomen.org or contacts us at office@bgfundforwomen.org or via phone +359 887275301, Gergana Kutseva.