Alpha Bank: Putting accessibility first

Equal access is an inalienable right for all and is a strategic priority of the European Union and the United Nations for equality and inclusion. In particular, the
issue promoted by UN for this year International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3) is the strengthening of leaders who are also people with disabilities, and highlighting them as examples that will bring about radical changes in the way the world’s societies perceive and integrate disability.

Along with the Paralympians

H Alpha Bankaiming for a society that is inclusive and open to all, is already standing by the side of two great Paralympians, Nasos Gavelas and Grigoris Polychronidis. With the program “Together with the Paralympians”, which began in 2005, the Bank not only rewards the two Paralympians for their multiple distinctions in world sports, but also cooperates with them, contributing to the effort to create the necessary conditions for sports to become accessible to all.

At a recent meal hosted by the Bank’s management for the two athletes, the CEO of Alpha Bank, Vassilis Psaltis, had characteristically said:

“Nassos and Grigoris embody the essence of Alpha Bank’s values ​​as they demonstrate the power of empowerment and collaboration and personify our commitment to excellence. Their stories perfectly align with our Purpose at Alpha Bank: To support progress in life and entrepreneurship for a better tomorrow.”

In fact, from 2022, the Bank supports the initiative of Grigoris Polychronides and the Hellenic Paralympians Association to introduce the sport of Boccia to school children. This year, the 3rd Day of the Botsia Student Championship was held at the Municipal Theater of Piraeus, where students had the opportunity to learn and compete, giving a message of inclusion and equal access.

Culture for all

But Alpha Bank’s efforts for equality do not stop at sports. With the “Culture for all” initiative, the Bank collaborates with important cultural institutions and organizations and together they create the conditions that pave the way for universal accessibility to the country’s cultural events.

Cinema for everyone

Since 2019, the Bank has been an uninterrupted accessibility sponsor of the largest Film Festival in Greece, the Thessaloniki Film Festival. The goal is to make screenings universally accessible, and so far over 134,000 of our fellow human beings have benefited from this initiative.

This year, universally accessible films were screened, such as the films “John the Violent” by Tonia Marketakis (1973) and “Robbery in Athens” by Vangelis Serdaris (1969). In total, there were 47 accessible screenings including the subtitled feature films, attended by 20,150 viewers. Both live and online screenings were provided with audio description for the blind and visually impaired and subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing. At the same time, after financing a relevant study by the Bank, the Olympian cinema has now become universally accessible to people with mobility disabilities.

From 2022, the Festival will also award the special Alpha Bank Accessibility Award to films that highlight issues that touch the daily lives of People with Disabilities. In this year’s
event, the award – which comes with a cash prize of €3,000 – was jointly awarded to director Leonard Mink and young actor Ben Kermer for the German medium-length film ‘Tremolo’ which offers a profound social message about acceptance and diversity.

Accessible Theatre

The magic of the theater is an experience that for Alpha Bank should be available to everyone, which is why the collaboration with the National Theater, the largest theater organization in the country, continues for another year. The partnership started last year’s theater season, which has already produced 4 plays that have been presented in accessible performances with 630 viewers using accessibility services.

In total, for the 2024-2025 season, 7 universally accessible performances are planned, provided with audio description, transcription of the programs in Braille, Greek supertitles and simultaneous interpretation in Greek sign language. At the same time, the spectators have the opportunity to take a tactile tour before the performances start, while the National Theater also allows guide dogs to enter.

All together at the Opera

Alpha Bank, emphasizing shows that promote quality culture, has started three years ago a great collaboration with the National Opera, offering both universally accessible performances and artistic workshops that give the opportunity to adults and teenagers with or without disability to enhance their artistic expression.

There are also seminars for teachers of artistic or non-formal education, where they learn how to develop skills and encourage artistic creation in a more inclusive and accessible way.

As far as performances are concerned, this year the plays “Into the Woods” and “The Loser” were presented in universally accessible conditions, while to date there have been a total of 7 universally accessible performances and more than 29,500 spectators have attended them.

Finally, as part of the “Together at the Opera” program, Alpha Bank supports the organization of training seminars for the staff of the National Opera on issues of mobility, communication and reception of the disabled.

Collaboration with the Thessaloniki Concert Hall

In 2024, Alpha Bank also launched its collaboration with the Thessaloniki Concert Hall, realizing the first universally accessible opera in Northern Greece. It’s about
work “La Traviata” by Giuseppe Verdi, which was attended by over 4,000 spectators.

This collaboration has also sparked a series of events, entitled “Writers of the World Travel to the Mansion” which hosts meetings with readers’ favorite authors. The events, which have so far been attended by over 450 people, started in October 2024 and are accessible with the support of Alpha Bank and the provision of interpretation in Greek sign language.

Art for people with Mild Cognitive Impairment

An excellent initiative of the B&E Goulandris Foundation was the occasion to understand how Art can be made accessible to people with Mild Cognitive Impairment but also to age groups over 60. Alpha Bank supports the Foundation’s initiative, which in collaboration with the “seveneleven” organization implements digital and live actions with various themes for equal access to art.

Neuron Festival

For the second year, the Bank left its mark at the 3rd Nevronas Festival, the largest Festival of Inclusive Performing Arts and Artistic Interaction, which aims to
raise public awareness of accessibility issues but also celebrate diversity.

In the context of the Festival, Alpha Bank, in addition to being a sponsor, carried out three actions. The first was the screening of the documentary “Loxi”, a film which was distinguished at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival in the spring, winning the Alpha Bank Accessibility award and which was watched by over 140 people.

Also, in collaboration with Grigoris Polychronidis, the Bank organized a Boccia tournament, in which more than 180 people of all ages, with or without disabilities, participated. Finally, Alpha Bank’s Corporate Responsibility Manager, Rouli Christopoulou, participated in a discussion panel on disability and neurodiversity, analyzing the issue of accessibility to Art for people with disabilities.

Labor inclusion

A third major pillar in Alpha Bank’s effort for a more inclusive society and the equal access of people with disabilities to all aspects of everyday life, is its collaboration with the Special Education Workshop “Margarita”, which is aimed at people with mental disabilities .

From 2023, the Bank organizes job shadowing days, during which students of the Laboratory visit the Alpha Bank headquarters and receive useful advice for their integration into the labor market. At the same time, for one day they become “employees” of the Bank, having the opportunity to work under real conditions with the
help of the Bank’s people and to get to know their working daily life up close. In fact, 2 “Margarita” graduates have already been hired at the Bank.

Access to daily transactions

One of the most critical areas on which the Bank has not stopped working is the accessibility of its services, adopting technologies and policies that facilitate the daily life of its Customers.

So far, 86% of shops in Greece are accessible to people with mobility difficulties. At the same time, all ATMs in the country have embossed elements on the keyboard, while
300 of them also have the possibility of voice guidance. Finally, in its Branches, the Bank has specialized staff who act as witnesses for people with visual impairments to facilitate their transactions, while providing Visually Impaired Customers with the option of receiving, within 7 days, documents printed in Braille, such as trading and pricing terms.