VSA Ireland

Arts & Disability Ireland The Sean O'Casey Centre St. Mary's Road North East Wall Dublin 3, Ireland	Mr. Pádraig Naughton
Tel: 353-1-850-9002/3 Fax: 353-1-850-9037	info@adiarts.ie http://www.adiarts.ie

Organizational Snapshot:

Arts and Disability Ireland (ADI) promotes the cultural equality of people with disabilities in the arts throughout Ireland. ADI champions people with disabilities as creators, producers, and audiences of the arts through disability equality trainings, community arts workshops and festivals, conferences, professional development workshops, and the Counterbalance Dance and Disability Project. With the assistance of a grant from the Arts Council, ADI is currently undergoing many positive changes such as staff expansion, the addition of a virtual arts center, and the extension of programs beyond the Dublin area. ADI programs such as Disability Cabarets that create a space for exploration, debate and celebration of disability culture, an Arts and Disability Mentoring Scheme that partners emerging artists with professional artists for career development, and ongoing workshops that facilitate opportunities for people with disabilities in the arts have all contributed to the development of the first Arts and Disability/Disability Arts Network in the Republic of Ireland. Additionally, ADI organized the first National Arts and Disability Festival in 2002.