DESIG*ness wraps up in Vilnius with a final conference, shared reflections and future perspectives
The final days of DESIG*ness in Lithuania marked an important and meaningful moment for the whole project. At the heart of the programme was the final conference in Vilnius, a lively and well-attended event that brought together project partners, professionals, stakeholders and participants around the themes that have guided DESIGness from the very beginning: inclusion, accessibility and the transformative potential of design in education and cultural practice.
More than a closing event, the conference became a space for exchange, discussion and celebration. It was an opportunity to look back at the path developed through the project, share experiences from different countries and reflect together on the relevance of designing more accessible and inclusive learning environments. The strong participation and the quality of the conversations made the conference one of the key moments of these final project days: a collective occasion to recognise what DESIG*ness has built, and how much these issues continue to matter across sectors and contexts.
Among the activities in Vilnius, partners also visited the Lithuanian Audiosensory Library, a public institution that provides books in audio, Braille and other accessible formats for people who cannot or find it difficult to read standard printed text. The visit offered an inspiring glimpse into inclusive practices and approaches to accessibility in the field of reading and knowledge sharing.
The programme then continued in Nida, on Lithuania’s Curonian Spit, a unique UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape shaped by sand, wind, sea and human activity. There, the partnership gathered for the final partner meeting - another key moment in the conclusion of DESIG*ness. If the conference was the public-facing culmination of the project, the meeting in Nida was the space to take stock together: reviewing results, discussing achievements, identifying lessons learned and reflecting on how the project’s tools, methods and relationships can continue to generate value beyond its formal end.
