Browse content similar to 21/05/2017. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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That is some height! In today's Community Life, | 0:00:04 | 0:00:07 | |
join me as we explore the importance of trees in our lives. | 0:00:07 | 0:00:12 | |
OK, so, here we go! | 0:00:12 | 0:00:13 | |
And we're getting back on our bikes as the over-fifties are being | 0:00:13 | 0:00:17 | |
encouraged to return to two-wheeled transport. | 0:00:17 | 0:00:20 | |
But first on Community Life, have you ever wondered what life | 0:00:27 | 0:00:30 | |
would be like if you were given a dementia diagnosis? | 0:00:30 | 0:00:34 | |
Well, one charity believes their members' lives | 0:00:34 | 0:00:37 | |
can still be full and rewarding. | 0:00:37 | 0:00:39 | |
Our special reporter today is John, who himself has dementia. | 0:00:39 | 0:00:43 | |
'I'm John. At first look, I'm a normal guy.' | 0:00:47 | 0:00:51 | |
I also live with dementia. | 0:00:51 | 0:00:54 | |
Dementia is a term for a collection of symptoms that rob people of | 0:00:54 | 0:00:58 | |
their memories and brainpower. | 0:00:58 | 0:01:01 | |
'It affects my life in lots of ways, | 0:01:01 | 0:01:04 | |
'but it doesn't mean that I can't talk for myself. | 0:01:04 | 0:01:08 | |
'I can still make decisions.' | 0:01:08 | 0:01:10 | |
I helped set up Dementia NI. | 0:01:10 | 0:01:13 | |
It's a charity that supports people with the same diagnosis as me, | 0:01:13 | 0:01:17 | |
because we can still live happy and fulfilled lives. | 0:01:17 | 0:01:22 | |
We challenge the stigma of our diagnosis. | 0:01:22 | 0:01:26 | |
There are around 20,000 people | 0:01:26 | 0:01:28 | |
living with dementia in Northern Ireland. | 0:01:28 | 0:01:31 | |
We promote our rights and strive | 0:01:31 | 0:01:33 | |
to make sure we get the services and support we need. | 0:01:33 | 0:01:38 | |
So, somebody who gets dementia, like myself... | 0:01:38 | 0:01:41 | |
Dementia NI members give talks and share our experiences in the | 0:01:41 | 0:01:45 | |
hope that others can understand the condition. | 0:01:45 | 0:01:48 | |
Dementia NI was really set up to enable people with dementia | 0:01:48 | 0:01:51 | |
to have their voices heard. | 0:01:51 | 0:01:53 | |
We want more people to be aware of how they can help us maintain | 0:01:53 | 0:01:57 | |
our independence within our community. | 0:01:57 | 0:02:00 | |
Dementia NI is a unique organisation led by people living with | 0:02:00 | 0:02:05 | |
dementia, supported by staff and volunteers. | 0:02:05 | 0:02:09 | |
-Hi, John! -Hi, Frances! | 0:02:13 | 0:02:15 | |
People will be surprised to see you out and about driving a car. | 0:02:15 | 0:02:18 | |
You have a diagnosis of dementia. | 0:02:18 | 0:02:20 | |
I know, John. I have been diagnosed with dementia, | 0:02:22 | 0:02:24 | |
but that doesn't mean that I'm not still active and like getting about. | 0:02:24 | 0:02:28 | |
It's fantastic to see people like you about. | 0:02:28 | 0:02:31 | |
Other people don't realise that people with dementia still | 0:02:31 | 0:02:35 | |
-have a life. -Life's for the living! | 0:02:35 | 0:02:37 | |
And with dementia, you just don't lie down. | 0:02:37 | 0:02:40 | |
This is Ronnie. Ronnie has been living with dementia for five years. | 0:02:43 | 0:02:48 | |
He lives in supported housing | 0:02:48 | 0:02:50 | |
and at first felt very isolated after his diagnosis. | 0:02:50 | 0:02:54 | |
Beforehand, he was very depressed and he wouldn't want out of | 0:02:54 | 0:02:58 | |
the house, but since he's joined Dementia IN, you can't keep him in. | 0:02:58 | 0:03:02 | |
He likes to get out and about with Dementia NI and | 0:03:02 | 0:03:04 | |
he likes to get the awareness across. | 0:03:04 | 0:03:07 | |
Ronnie also speaks at events, | 0:03:07 | 0:03:10 | |
explaining what it's like to live with dementia. | 0:03:10 | 0:03:13 | |
Dementia NI has given me confidence to learn | 0:03:15 | 0:03:19 | |
and get out for a couple of hours on a Friday, | 0:03:19 | 0:03:24 | |
and I like it. | 0:03:24 | 0:03:25 | |
There are more people living with dementia now than ever before. | 0:03:25 | 0:03:30 | |
Dementia NI helps us live life to the full. | 0:03:30 | 0:03:33 | |
Some of our members can still drive, but for the likes of me and | 0:03:36 | 0:03:39 | |
a lot of the other ones, I had to return my licence. | 0:03:39 | 0:03:42 | |
So unless you came along and helped us, | 0:03:42 | 0:03:45 | |
I would still be stuck in the house. | 0:03:45 | 0:03:47 | |
Volunteers are a vital part of what we do. | 0:03:47 | 0:03:51 | |
Taking them, driving them to places, I get a lot of satisfaction, because | 0:03:51 | 0:03:58 | |
it's a situation where you're doing something and it's of direct | 0:03:58 | 0:04:02 | |
benefit to people, and they appreciate it very, very much. | 0:04:02 | 0:04:06 | |
And it can make an amazing difference to people's lives. | 0:04:06 | 0:04:10 | |
For me, public transport is really hard for me to do. | 0:04:10 | 0:04:13 | |
I can't go anywhere on my own, | 0:04:13 | 0:04:15 | |
or I would forget where I was going and not be able to get to the place. | 0:04:15 | 0:04:18 | |
So people like Eamonn taking me to places I need to go | 0:04:18 | 0:04:22 | |
gives me that freedom back. It gives me my social life back again. | 0:04:22 | 0:04:26 | |
It makes me feel part of society again and doesn't exclude me. | 0:04:26 | 0:04:29 | |
Our activities help reduce isolation and allow our | 0:04:30 | 0:04:34 | |
members to remain a part of society for as long as possible. | 0:04:34 | 0:04:39 | |
We invite other organisations and service providers to come to | 0:04:39 | 0:04:44 | |
our meetings and to hear what we have to say. | 0:04:44 | 0:04:47 | |
Dementia NI takes our message out into the community, because we need | 0:04:48 | 0:04:53 | |
to raise awareness and improve the lives of everyone who has dementia. | 0:04:53 | 0:04:58 | |
If you live with dementia and would like to be involved, | 0:04:58 | 0:05:01 | |
we would love to hear from you. | 0:05:01 | 0:05:03 | |
We need volunteers to help | 0:05:03 | 0:05:04 | |
with travel and to support us at meetings. | 0:05:04 | 0:05:07 | |
Any donations you could make would be greatly appreciated to | 0:05:07 | 0:05:11 | |
help us continue our work. | 0:05:11 | 0:05:13 | |
Thank you. | 0:05:13 | 0:05:14 | |
If you would like to make a donation to Dementia NI, | 0:05:15 | 0:05:18 | |
then go to our web page and click on the Donate button. | 0:05:18 | 0:05:21 | |
And visit the charity's web page at dementiani.org | 0:05:21 | 0:05:25 | |
for more information about how you or a relative can become involved. | 0:05:25 | 0:05:30 | |
This is the first time I've been on a bike in almost five years. | 0:05:38 | 0:05:42 | |
To encourage older people to return to cycling, | 0:05:42 | 0:05:45 | |
a special course has been running in Belfast, | 0:05:45 | 0:05:48 | |
and it has reinvigorated the people taking part. | 0:05:48 | 0:05:51 | |
The first stage of the course is in a traffic-free environment, | 0:05:53 | 0:05:57 | |
reintroducing them to the bike, and then we move on to the street | 0:05:57 | 0:06:00 | |
environment, which is what we've been doing today, teaching them | 0:06:00 | 0:06:03 | |
about where to ride on the road, riding along safely, | 0:06:03 | 0:06:06 | |
sharing space with other motorists and with other pedestrians, | 0:06:06 | 0:06:10 | |
and then to negotiate when they come to junctions, | 0:06:10 | 0:06:14 | |
where they should be, where they should be looking and how | 0:06:14 | 0:06:17 | |
to anticipate how motorists are going to behave. | 0:06:17 | 0:06:20 | |
Well, thankfully, so far the traffic has been sort of very limited, | 0:06:20 | 0:06:23 | |
but it gives you a bit more encouragement to go somewhere | 0:06:23 | 0:06:26 | |
else on your own bike. On your bike, as they say! | 0:06:26 | 0:06:29 | |
I would say that people should stop thinking about it, | 0:06:29 | 0:06:31 | |
just get on their bikes and go and do it, | 0:06:31 | 0:06:33 | |
because thinking about it isn't getting you anywhere! | 0:06:33 | 0:06:36 | |
I look forward to spending many more years on the road now I've | 0:06:36 | 0:06:41 | |
been bitten by the bug! | 0:06:41 | 0:06:43 | |
This course is being run today for Volunteer Now. | 0:06:44 | 0:06:47 | |
If anyone wants to take part in the course, | 0:06:47 | 0:06:49 | |
they can directly contact me at Sustrans, | 0:06:49 | 0:06:51 | |
in our Belfast office, and we can organise a group for them to | 0:06:51 | 0:06:55 | |
join or a tailor-made group for them themselves. | 0:06:55 | 0:06:59 | |
Now, I'm heading up this tree to find out about | 0:07:05 | 0:07:08 | |
a special campaign to recognise the value of trees in our lives. | 0:07:08 | 0:07:12 | |
Did I mention I do not like heights? | 0:07:12 | 0:07:15 | |
Right... | 0:07:15 | 0:07:17 | |
Patrick, I have interviewed people in many weird and wonderful | 0:07:22 | 0:07:25 | |
places, but never up a tree. What's happening today? | 0:07:25 | 0:07:29 | |
We're here at Carnmoney Hill as we launch another initiative, and it's | 0:07:29 | 0:07:33 | |
a call to people to actually help us to compile a charter for trees. | 0:07:33 | 0:07:38 | |
Tell me more about this tree charter. What actually is it? | 0:07:38 | 0:07:41 | |
We asked people over the last year to tell us why trees were | 0:07:41 | 0:07:45 | |
important to them. We've gathered all those stories. | 0:07:45 | 0:07:48 | |
We will produce a charter, | 0:07:48 | 0:07:50 | |
and that charter will help to guide our work in the years to come. | 0:07:50 | 0:07:53 | |
What are we like, Patrick, for woodland cover in Northern Ireland? | 0:07:53 | 0:07:57 | |
Sadly, we're bottom of the league table. | 0:07:57 | 0:07:59 | |
We've got about 8% woodland cover. When we look further afield in | 0:07:59 | 0:08:03 | |
Europe, they've got a whopping 46% cover. | 0:08:03 | 0:08:07 | |
So we're very, very much behind, and lots need to be done. | 0:08:07 | 0:08:10 | |
If people want to get in touch, Patrick, how do they do that? | 0:08:10 | 0:08:13 | |
It's as easy as just go online, | 0:08:13 | 0:08:16 | |
feed in Tree Charter and follow the directions, | 0:08:16 | 0:08:19 | |
and then you have an opportunity to be involved in what is an | 0:08:19 | 0:08:23 | |
absolutely fantastic initiative. | 0:08:23 | 0:08:25 | |
Right, well, Patrick, don't let me hold you back any longer. | 0:08:25 | 0:08:27 | |
More information on the tree charter can be found on our website, | 0:08:27 | 0:08:31 | |
where you'll also find contact details for today's programme | 0:08:31 | 0:08:35 | |
and, of course, our community notice board. | 0:08:35 | 0:08:37 | |
Hopefully, I will get down from here before it gets too dark! | 0:08:37 | 0:08:41 | |
I'll see you next time. Bye-bye. | 0:08:41 | 0:08:43 | |
Right, Patrick, you first. | 0:08:43 | 0:08:44 | |
Thank you! | 0:08:44 | 0:08:46 |