Press Release
January 7, 2008

Manitoba expert helps Russian agency develop clearer vision

WINNIPEG, Manitoba, January 7, 2008 – When a Russian agency for the blind asked for advice on how to improve its efficiency, the Canadian Executive Service Organization (CESO) sent Joan Clasen of Winnipeg.

Joan, who retired in 2006 after a lifetime of managing social agencies in Manitoba, has been a CESO Volunteer Adviser (VA) since 1996.

A non-profit, volunteer-based organization founded in 1967, CESO’s mission is to build capacity in governance and economic development through the transfer of knowledge and skills by VAs.

CESO offers professional and technical expertise and mentoring services to people and organizations in Canadian Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities, developing nations and some of the emerging market economies of Eastern Europe.

Joan is one of CESO’s 2,700 VAs and over the past decade she has completed four International assignments and 24 assignments with Aboriginal communities in Canada.

For her assignment in Russia, Joan travelled to the city of Chelyabinsk, located near the boundary between Europe and Asia in the southern Ural Mountains, and home to more than one million people.

In the Chelyabinsk area, about 1,000 people a year access the services of the Chelyabinsk Regional Rehabilitation, Cultural and Sport Centre of All-Russian Society of the Blind.

With a staff of 25, the non-profit agency organizes festivals, competitions, concerts, parties, intellectual games, sport events and other activities aimed at enhancing the integration of blind and visually-impaired people into society.

The organization’s operations and ability to access necessary funding, however, 

are hurt by the lack of legal status and the absence of government initiatives and support for social and cultural rehabilitation of disabled people.

In this context, the centre requested the assistance of a CESO VA to assess their current operations, introduce the experience of Canadian organizations working with disabled people, develop new methodologies of assisting blind and visually-impaired people, develop a strategic plan in order to improve the organization’s efficiency, and elaborate a strategy of attracting the support of the business sector to their activities.

“It took me a while to get my head around the Russian concept of rehabilitation for people with disabilities,” said Joan. “The focus seemed to be on the ‘quality of life’- music, art, drama, social interaction, dance, etc.

“The North American model is based on getting people back into the work force. They did that also but in sheltered workshop settings - something we don’t see here any more. These workshop settings are integrated and make a fair profit that then is used to support the services for the people with disabilities.”

During her 16 days in Russia, Joan reviewed the organization’s current programs and provided recommendations on expanding the existing programs and adding new programs focusing on youth; held meetings with sister organizations; presented and discussed various rehabilitation models; provided samples of public information literature on working with the blind, samples of adaptive equipment, and contact with an organization that provides free in-service training to staff over the internet; discussed short-, medium- and long-term funding options provided recommendations on accessing international funding and presented funding proposal format.

As a leading Canadian international development agency, CESO’s work overseas is largely supported by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) while the national program receives primary funding from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC). Additional funding comes from client/partners, multilateral agencies, Canadian corporations, foundations and scores of interested individuals.

For information about donating to CESO or to learn about becoming a volunteer, please visit www.ceso-saco.com.

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For more information, members of the media may contact:

Josie Marchese
Communications Manager
Tel: (416) 961-2376 Ext. 253
jmarchese@ceso-saco.com

Joan Clasen
Tel: 204-783-4030
joanclasen@shaw.ca