site.btaSix Museums Create Dementia-Friendly Environments

Six museums in Bulgaria, including the National Polytechnic Museum (NPM), have joined a network aimed at making cultural venues more accessible, inclusive and welcoming to people living with dementia and their families, NPM said on Monday.

The Network of Cultural Spaces – Friends of People with Dementia also includes Dryanovo History Museum, the Etar Regional Ethnographic Open-Air Museum, the Gabrovo Regional History Museum, the National Museum of Education and the Museum of Humour and Satire, the initiative’s team said.

The network seeks to encourage people living with dementia and their families to participate in cultural life. It is expected to expand gradually to include museums and other cultural organizations across the country. The six participating museums are featured on a digital map intended to form the basis of a growing national network.

“Museums are places for shared experiences and provide an appropriate environment for people living with different forms of dementia and their families. The Cultural Space – Dementia-Friendly network, of which the National Polytechnic Museum is also a member, is evidence of precisely this,” NPM said.

The network was established under the Heritage with Care – Cultural Memory for People with Dementia project, implemented by the Alzheimer Bulgaria Association and the Etar Regional Ethnographic Open-Air Museum. The project receives financial support from The Headley Southeast Europe Cultural Heritage Fund, managed by the Balkan Museum Network. Further information about the participating museums is available on the initiative’s digital map.