‘Let’s Live Together’ a Sharjah Museums Authority initiative targeting the hearing impaired

In an endeavor to make art and culture accessible for all community members including the hearing-impaired, a program for in Arabic and English sign language will be used inside Sharjah museums as part of “Let’s Live Together” initiative. 

Launched by the Accessibility Services and Programs Department of Interpretation and Education at Sharjah Museums Authority, the initiative came as part of SMA’s social responsibility program and aims to integrate all groups in the community of all abilities to create a more inclusive museum environment for hearing people and the hearing-impaired. 

The initiative, which took place at the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization, offered a range of activities in sign language such as a presentation of five unique collections taken from various Sharjah museums, including the Islamic Civilization, Archaeology, and Calligraphy. 

The event also included a number of workshops and a dialogue session titled “Let’s live Together” aiming to create an environment that is conducive to social harmony. 

Manal Ataya, Director General of SMA said that the initiative, which coincides with the Arab Deaf Week, aims to spread a culture of understanding and aspires to build more bridges connecting diverse groups of our community by highlighting the needs of people with hearing impairments and the challenges facing them. 

She said: “everyone in our community is entitled to an enjoyable museum experience that meets their needs and although every museum is different; we can still maximize their social impact”.

Ataya added that ‘Let’s Live Together’ is inspired by the principles of the year of tolerance and comes as part of SMA’s ongoing efforts to position museums as accessible spaces for all members of the community and to meet public needs by providing the best services and engaging by way of effective educational programs.