Charity Foundation "Anton's right here"

The prize money from the competition will be used to support the program activities of the first and the only one Charity Foundation in St.Petersburg - «Anton's right here" which provides systematic support to people with autism of various ages and their families. 

Costs of program activities ofthe foundation:  

- salaries of full_time and part_time employees; 

- rent_of_three main centers,being the part of the Foundation; 

- procurement of specialized equipment to work with the target group;

- implementation of large-scale promotion/educational projects in Saint-Petersburg and Russia;

- Implementation of training courses for_subject matter specialists,working in the sphere of autism; 

- Implementation of sociological_research in Saint-Petersburg,devoted to accessibility of city infrastructure for people_with_mental_disabilities. 

In_the_result of the support the Foundation will be_able to continue its program activities and create/test the models_of_social support,meant for people_with_autism and their families,in other regions of Russia;the region needs about300specialists and doctors,so that autistic_people had the access to high-quality medicine in the city;implementation of promotion and education projects will help_raising awareness to the_problem,as well as the ways of its solution,what,in its turn will contribute to the main aim of my activity-formation of full inclusive environment for autistic people and other mental_disabilities in Saint-Petersburg in_the_particular and in Russia in_general.

I came across the problem of autism and its spread in Russia in 2013,when Charity Foundation «Anton's right here» was founded in St.Petersburg and it became clear that the situation for people with autism and other mental disorders was not just difficult,but critical, practically, consisting of several key stages: birth, diagnosis and further life in a public-specialized institution without a single chance to find friends,family or yourself. That is why, from the very beginning of the Foundation's work,we began providing targeted support for people with autism and their families-for some of them these are  therapeutic sessions, for others-legal assistance in obtaining state benefits, or solving financial problems that have accumulated due to the inability to solve them independently.

Now our Foundation is one of the largest Charity Foundations in Russia, we continue to provide targeted support to our beneficiaries,but we also understand that our main goal is the formation of an inclusive environment, both in St.Petersburg and beyond. We are actively working on creating horizontal interactions, advising executive authorities,supporting regional organizations and activists whose activities are aimed at ensuring that people with mental disorders have full access to social services on an equal basis with all members of our society.

According to the World Health Organization,one in every 160 children in the world is born with autism.According to the Russian Ministry of Health,autism has a high prevalence in Russia,but in fact,people with autism remain "invisible" to the state authorities.This is primarily due to problems in statistics.For example,there are no statistics on adults with autism in Russia, while statistics on children and adolescents are understated by up to_17_times in most of the regions,particularly in St.Petersburg.Thus,the city lacks the social infrastructure and specialists to provide full-fledged support for autistic people.

Our Foundation operates on two levels:the first is systemic assistance,which is provided to_468_families.The five sites of the Foundation provide therapeutic support to children,youth and adults with autism in the form of group and individual sessions,legal issues,financial support in difficult life situations,and psychological consultations.But more than 350 families are on the waiting list for our help.The second level is making the city environment more accessible for people with mental disorders,including providing access to medical,educational and recreational services.To achieve this goal the specialists of our Foundation cooperate with the city's executive authorities, implement programs in city institutions,conduct training courses for specialists and doctors,working in this field and open resource classes in kindergartens and schools.

The work of our foundation is based on two key factors. On the one hand, in our current program activities, we use only those methods and practices that are scientifically proven to be effective in working with autistic people and their families.Our specialists have extensive practical experience gained over the lifetime of the Foundation,but we also constantly cooperate with leading international and Russian institutes that have established themselves in the field of psychology and psychiatry.We hold lectures and master classes for employees of our Foundation and employees of other organizations.And interaction between the participants in these events allows us to introduce and test new effective programs for our beneficiaries.On the other hand,our Foundation conducts researches both among people who need help and infrastructure possibilities in the city.All the research results are in free access and can be used by any organization in Russia that supports people with mental disorders.In this way we shape and develop the social opportunities of the city in which we live,taking into account the specific needs of people we help,so that in the future these people themselves can choose the most comfortable place where they will receive support without worrying about the quality of the assistance.

In 2013,when our Foundation was created we were following the dream of creating a system of targeted support for people with autism in St.Petersburg,now we understand how important it is to form an inclusive environment that itself will reproduce the conditions that will allow all members of society to lead a decent life.Therefore,one of the most important elements in our work is educational activities aimed at disseminating information about what we do and why it's important for each of us to get involved in this work.We cooperate with educational institutions (schools,colleges,universities),but we also organize big events all over_the country, which equally involve people with physical disabilities and "ordinary" people—festivals, marathons,art projects,and so on. All events are united by a common idea—inclusion and diversity.As time passes, we can confidently say that our positive impact resonates in the minds and hearts of_people. Hundreds of_people help us prepare for_our events and tens of thousands participate in them, we've independently launched more than20 major inclusive creative projects that have received nationwide recognition,and we help implement up to5projects each year from local communities in the field.Our recommendations to support people with mental disorders are used by local and federal executive agencies in_the implementation of_state programs.