The biggest urban festival MoscowUrban FEST will take place on 4-7 July 2019 in Zaryadye Park. More than 100 open educational and cultural events will be available at one of the most impressive and modern venues of the capital. This is the first year that the festival will be inclusive. This means that many lectures given by Russian speakers will be available for hearing impaired and deaf people, as they will be accompanied by a translation into sign language. 

In addition, visitors to the Festival with the theme of "City/Attention/Umwelt" will be able to explore the world fr om the perspective of people with different physical, mental and social needs. The programme includes workshops in the dark, Braille classes, lectures and workshops on synaesthesia, city tours with a former homeless person and many other things.  

Workshops in Darkness

The world seems completely different in the dark Human perception changes, and therefore the reality around us changes too. The MoscowUrban FEST has partnered with The Walk in the Dark museum to give everyone interested the opportunity to explore the world from the perspective of a blind person. This cluster includes workshops entitled "Smells in Darkness" (you can create your own fragrance in total darkness), "Music in Darkness" (to get to know unusual percussion instruments) and "Tea Ceremony in Darkness." Everyone who wishes to come to the workshops on 6 and 7 July should register on the website.

Workshops for learning Braille

Braille is a tactile reading and writing system which enables people with blindness and visual impairments to read and write. A blind employee of "The Walking in the Dark" museum will teach everyone who wants the practical details of using Braille and will tell a few interesting facts of how this language was created to enable communication for visually impaired and blind people. The classes will take place on 6 and 7 July for those who have registered in advance at the Festival website.

Let's explore the city as viewed by a synaesthete.

Synaesthetes are people who have synaesthesia – i.e. a perceptual phenomenon which causes additional unusual perceptual cross-overs of colour, sound, taste, touch, etc. For example, such a person when touching a sculpture can hear how it sounds. Only 4% of the global population has such a "gift". To understand how this way of perception works and to experience what it's like to be a synaesthete, the Festival in cooperation with Playtronica will arrange a "Synaesthesia of Streets" lecture (6 July 14:00-15:00) and "Let the City Sound" workshop (6 July15:00-18:00). All the events require registration in advance.

The City Through the Eyes of a Former Homeless

Moscow Urban FEST together with its Charity partner "Nochlezhka" (shelter for homeless people) arranges walking tours around the city guided by a former homeless person. Here, tour participants will see the most unexpected aspects of the city. The goal of this project is to see Moscow as it is viewed by a person who used to live in the streets and to learn to see the city in a completely different way, as if inside out. The tours will be conducted on 4 and 5 July from 15:00 till 16:00. All participants must register on the website in advance.

"How to Convert Social Connections into Help?" workshop

This workshop on volunteer fundraising entitled "How to Convert Social Connections into Help?" will be held with the support of the "Takiye Dela" as part of the Festival programme. Katya Grishunina, Head of the "Polzuyas Sluchaem" platform, will explain what volunteer fundraising is, how it works in Russia and the USA and what makes it different from crowdfunding. The participants will find out the secret to the Ice Bucket Challenge success and learn how it managed to shake up the charity domain and will also discuss how to change our environment using social networks and the capacities of existing urban communities. Each participant will have the chance to arrange his/her first fundraising event and will learn about all the difficulties he/she might face during fundraising. The workshop will take place in the Yauza Hall on 7 July from 13:00 till 15:00 All participants need to register in advance on the website and have a laptop or tablet during the event. 

When: 4-7 July
Wh ere: Zaryadye Park
For more information visit: https://fest.mosurbanforum.ru/