Culture of Equality: Integration of Persons with Disabilities into the Work of Cultural Institutions

The identity of people with disabilities is largely determined by society’s attitude towards them. The way society talks about them, perceives their needs and allows them access to education, culture, healthcare and employment, defines their further position and equality in the community. Therefore, those who work in the field of culture have a great responsibility in relation to the position of persons with disabilities, to perceive them not only as objects, but as subjects in cultural activity – as creators, consumers or employees. The legal framework, international and national, has determined the prohibition of discrimination against persons with disabilities, equal opportunities for them and the enjoyment of all the rights of persons without disabilities. It provides a good basis for cultural institutions in the integration of persons with disabilities. Тhrough culture, every individual can realise themselves professionally, receive an education, enjoy leisure time, and create and exhibit works. The paper will present Culture of Equality research conducted on a sample of 159 cultural institutions in Serbia at the national, regional and local levels, and providing quality data on the position of people with disabilities in the cultural community and the opportunities for their integration. Its findings point to potential use of action targeted at integrating and employing people with disabilities into the operations of cultural institutions

In Search for Meaning? Modelling Generation Z Spiritual Travel Motivation Scale—The Case of Serbia

Spiritual travel is increasingly viewed as an asset for the development of sustainable tourism. A great deal of research has been conducted on travel motivation to comprehend spiritually-motivated travel, but less is known about Generation Z’s travel motivation. This subject is relevant since Generation Z will represent the travel market of the future. Therefore, managers of spiritually-themed locations must understand the characteristics of their prospective visitors (Generation Z) in order to create more comprehensive tourism offerings. We use exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to validate the scale and inferential statistics to analyse the data regarding the main socio-demographic characteristics. Spiritual and Canonical Experiences, Escapism, Ascetic Life, and Social Interactions, Natural and Cultural Values, Religious Events, and Active Participation were identified as the main dimensions in this study. In our conclusion, the ramifications of the findings for destination management and marketing are examined

Da li komunikacija postoji? Pristup informacijama u Srbiji za osobe sa invaliditetom

Persons with disabilities often face barriers that hinder their ability to access information effectively. This study presents results of a survey which was conducted in the second half of 2022, on the topic of the accessibility of information for persons with disabilities in Serbia, as well as their means of communication. A convenience sample of 111 individuals with physical and/or sensory disabilities, with basic digital literacy, aged 18 to 59, was surveyed through the mediation of associations of persons with disabilities. The findings reveal the usage patterns, preferences, and challenges faced by individuals with disabilities in accessing information. It has been found that the internet (99.10%), social networks (91.89%), and specialized platforms (79.28%) are prominent sources of information. Although specialized applications for communication and telephone communication are widely used, personal contact communication (96.40% very often or often) is still the prevalent method of communication. Public institutions and state authorities are perceived as inadequately adapted to the needs of individuals with disabilities. The findings underscore the need for continued efforts to improve accessibility infrastructure and implement inclusive design principles to bridge the information gap for individuals with disabilities in Serbia.Uspostavljanje komunikacije predstavlja tranziciju iz individualnog ka kolektivnom, što je važan korak u procesu formiranja uređenog društva. Postizanje zadovoljavajućeg nivoa komunikacije za sve članove društva je imperativ u 21. veku. Poznato je da osobe sa invaliditetom otežano ostvaruju komunikaciju sa okolinom, i da se često suočavaju sa preprekama koje ih sprečavaju da efikasno pristupe informacijama. U tom smislu obaveza svake države je da obezbedi zakonsku regulativu za omogućavanje pristupačnosti informacija. U Republici Srbiji postoji zakonski i tehnološki okvir kojim se reguliše pristupačnost. Ova studija predstavlja rezultate istraživanja o dostupnosti informacija osobama sa invaliditetom u Srbiji, i o obrascima njihove komunikacije. Na osnovu istraživanja koje je izvršeno posredstvom udruženja osoba sa invaliditetom na uzorku od 111 osoba sa fizičkim i/ili senzornim invaliditetom starosti od 18 do 59 godina dat je uvid u obrasce komunikacije i obrasce pristupa informacijama, prioritete koje ove osobe imaju u pogledu komunikacije i pristupa informacijama, i izazove sa kojima se suočavaju. Predstavljeni su rezultati istraživanja o dostupnosti sredstava informisanja, i o mogućnostima da osobe sa invaliditetom poboljšaju svoju situaciju u pogledu pristupa informacijama. Utvrđeno je da su internet (99,10%), društvene mreže (91,89%) i specijalizovane platforme (79,28%) prominentni izvori informacija. Iako su specijalizovane aplikacije za komunikaciju i telefonska komunikacija u širokoj upotrebi, lični kontakt (96,40% je odgovorilo sa vrlo često i često) je i dalje preovlađujući način komunikacije. Javne institucije i državni organi se percipiraju kao neadekvatno prilagođeni potrebama osoba sa invaliditetom. Ovi rezultati naglašavaju potrebu za sprovođenjem kontinuiranih napora sa ciljem poboljšanja infrastrukture u Srbiji u cilju obezbeđivanja pristupačnosti, i potrebu za primenom principa inkluzivnog dizajna kako bi se premostio jaz između osoba sa invaliditetom i osoba koje nemaju invaliditet, u pogledu pristupa informacijama

Digitalna tehnologija i inkluzija: zavisnost i teškoće

U cilju obezbeđivanja jednakih prava za sve članove zajednice, savremeno društvo ima na raspolaganju digitalnu tehnologiju koja može da podrži i unapredi društvenu inkluziju. Cilj sprovedenog istraživanja bio je da se ispita da li kod osoba sa invaliditetom digitalna tehnologija može da izazove zavisnost i teškoće pri korišćenju. Rezultati su pokazali da za osobe sa invaliditetom ne postoji bojazan da mogu postati zavisne od digitalne tehnologije, ali da imaju teškoće pri korišćenju. Budući razvoj digitalnih tehnologija treba da bude u funkciji uklanjanja barijera u korišćenju kod osoba sa invaliditetom, čime bi se uticalo na poboljšanje njihovog položaja u društvu

Pain points of cultural institutions in search visibility: the case of Serbia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the common issues affecting the cultural institutions’ websites in terms of organic search visibility and to detect if there are some category specifics for the national libraries, archives and museums. Design/methodology/approach – In the first phase, an online survey was conducted involving the cultural institutions of national importance, aiming to map the current state of their websites in organizational and functional terms, to collect the information about the used domains, their social media activity and the use of analytical tools to monitor the visitor behavior and online traffic. In the second phase, the cultural institutions’ websites were analyzed using the “White Hat SEO” technics of optimization on Google. Findings – From the category perspective, the historical archives have the best Technical search engine optimization (SEO) position due to the low coding errors and fair site speed, the libraries are leading in content generation and the museums have a very good total SEO index due to their strong social media activities. Common issues are detected in the description of web images, non-existence of sitemaps and low website mobile friendliness. Research limitations/implications – The data were collected from the personnel of the national cultural institutions based on their pre-assumed knowledge and understanding of website management. Practical implications – The research methodology can be used to analyze the organic visibility of any national culture on search engines. h gap in addressing the cultural institutions’ websites from the search engine ctive was identified and addressed within the paper

Is there communication? Access to information by persons with disabilities in Serbia

Persons with disabilities often face barriers that hinder their ability to access information effectively. This study presents results of a survey which was conducted in the second half of 2022, on the topic of the accessibility of information for persons with disabilities in Serbia, as well as their means of communication. A convenience sample of 111 individuals with physical and/or sensory disabilities, with basic digital literacy, aged 18 to 59, was surveyed through the mediation of associations of persons with disabilities. The findings reveal the usage patterns, preferences, and challenges faced by individuals with disabilities in accessing information. It has been found that the internet (99.10%), social networks (91.89%), and specialized platforms (79.28%) are prominent sources of information. Although specialized applications for communication and telephone communication are widely used, personal contact communication (96.40% very often or often) is still the prevalent method of communication. Public institutions and state authorities are perceived as inadequately adapted to the needs of individuals with disabilities. The findings underscore the need for continued efforts to improve accessibility infrastructure and implement inclusive design principles to bridge the information gap for individuals with disabilities in Serbia

Иновативни алати за очување и презентацију културног наслеђа

У раду су представљене националне и међународне смернице за омогућавање приступачности, доступности и презентацију споменика културе уз поштовање савремених стандарда као што су дигитализација и инклузија. Свеобухватни циљ је дефинисање правца који води ка већој видљивости културног наслеђа Републике Србије, као и обезбеђивање континуитета у развоју дигиталних алата и процедура за интерпретацију, очување, презентацију, приступачност и доступност културног наслеђа и креирање јавних политика

Innovative tools for protection and presentation of cultural heritage

U radu su predstavljene nacionalne i međunarodne smernice za omogućavanje pristupačnosti, dostupnosti i prezentaciju spomenika kulture uz poštovanje savremenih standarda kao što su digitalizacija i inkluzija. Sveobuhvatni cilj je definisanje pravca koji vodi ka većoj vidljivosti kulturnog nasleđa Republike Srbije, kao i obezbeđivanje kontinuiteta u razvoju digitalnih alata i procedura za interpretaciju, očuvanje, prezentaciju, pristupačnost i dostupnost kulturnog nasleđa i kreiranje javnih politika.The paper presents national and international guidelines for accessibility, availability and presentation of cultural monuments, with respecting the contemporary standards such as digitization and inclusion. The overall goal is to define a direction for ensuring greater visibility of the cultural heritage of the Republic of Serbia, as well as obtaining continuity in the development of digital tools and procedures for the interpretation, protection, presentation, accessibility and availability of cultural heritage and the creation of public policies

Research and photo-documentation of medieval cultural monuments of CMS and SASA associates

Tokom 80-ih godina 20. veka saradnici Centra za multidisciplinarne studije Univerziteta u Beogradu i Srpske akademije nauka i umetnosti realizovali su prvu fazu projekta u okviru kojeg su ispitivane opeke monumentalnih srpskih građevina srednjeg veka prevashodno sakralnog tipa. Tema ovog multidisciplinarnog projekta se može posmatrati iz domena nauke o materijalima kao proučavanje tehnika pripreme građevinskog materijala u srednjem veku, ali se uporedo može posmatrati i kroz prizmu crkvenih studija u kojima se savremenim metodama proučavaju manastiri srednjeg veka. Prvi rezultati istraživanja obuhvatali su prezentovanje istorije upotrebe opeke u prominentnim državama antike kao i u srednjovekovnoj Srbiji, te eksperimentalno-savremeni deo. Objavljeni rezultati obogaćeni su foto-dokumentacijom koja sadrži atlas mikrostruktura, fotografije detalja manastira i fotografije samih manastira sa kratkim istorijskim opisom. Studije su respektabilni prilog koji je naučnoj, ali i široj populaciji u periodu oskudice materijala o srpskim manastirima učinio dostupnim rezultate istraživanja, kao i bogatu foto-dokumentaciju.During the 1980s, the associates of the Center for Multidisciplinary Studies (CMS) of the University of Belgrade and the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SASA) finished the first phase of the project which deals with the examination of bricks from the monumental medieval Serbian buildings primarily of sacral type. The topic of this multidisciplinary project can be viewed from the domain of materials science as a study of preparation techniques of construction materials in the Middle Ages, but it can also be viewed through the prism of church studies in which medieval monasteries are studied by contemporary methods. The first results included the presentation of the history of bricks usage in prominent countries of antiquity and in medieval Serbia, as well as the contemporary experimental part. The published results were enriched by photo documentation which contains the atlas of microstructures, photographs of monastery details and photographs of monasteries themselves with brief historical descriptions. The studies are respectable contribution that made the results of the research, as well as the rich photo documentation, available to the scientific and wider population in the period of the scarcity of materials about Serbian monasteries