The influence of civil society organisations on the quality of life of disabled persons

Osnovni cilj, ovog rada, je prikazati utjecaj organizacija civilnog društva na kvalitetu života osoba s invaliditetom. Na samom početku pojašnjene su osnovne odrednice civilnog društva te njegove razvijenosti u Republici Hrvatskoj, a u nastavku se iznose spoznaje koje osobe s invaliditetom čine ranjivom populacijom u Republici Hrvatskoj. Okosnicu rada čini prikaz određenih područja djelovanja organizacija civilnog društva, koji djeluju u korist osoba s invaliditetom. Relevantnost tih spoznaja je potkrijepljena primjerima djelovanja pojedinih organizacija civilnog društva u Republici Hrvatskoj. Pozitivan utjecaj organizacija civilnog društva ostvaren je na području neovisno življenja i života u zajednici, pristupačnosti i mobilnosti, području obrazovanja, zapošljavanja i rada, sudjelovanja u kulturnom životu te senzibiliziranju javnosti o potrebama i mogućnostima osoba s invaliditetom. U tom kontekstu, kroz djelovanje organizacija civilnog društva se promiče važnost da osoba s invaliditetom trebaju, s jedne strane, biti angažirane u upravljanju vlastitim životom, dok se s druge strane, kao ključnim ističe, postavljanje ove populacije kao aktera politike prema osobama s invaliditetom.The main purpose of this paper is to show the impact of civil society organizations on the quality of life of people with disabilities. At the the beginning of the paper the basic setting of civil society and its development in the Republic of Croatiais explained , and later the knowledge that people with disabilities make up the vulnerable part of the population in the Republic of Croatia is disclosed. The frame of the paper is made of the depiction of certain areas of work of civil society organizations that work in favour of people with disabilities. The relevance of this knowledge is supported with examples of actions of certain civil society organizations in Croatia. The positive influence of civil society organizations is visible in the areas of independent living and life within a community, accessibilty and mobility, education, employment and work, participating in cultural life and raising awareness the public about needs and abilities of people with disabilities. In that context, through the work of civil society organizations, the importance of the fact that people with disabilities should, on one hand, be involved in directing their own life, is promoted, while, on the other hand, it is emphasised that this part of the population should be put as representatives of people with disabilities