Supporting Activities & Leisure

Art and Culture, Exer­cise, Outings, and Socializing

The “Egmond Circle” social and recre­ational program invites partic­i­pants to spend time together, discover new things, and engage in conver­sa­tion with one another. The program will include activ­i­ties centered on art and culture, phys­i­cal activ­ity, outings, and social gatherings.

Not all program items have been final­ized yet. This page is updated on an ongo­ing basis.

  • End the day at O’Donnell’s Pub at the Hotel Zuider­duin, featur­ing live music, a trivia game, danc­ing, bowl­ing, and more.

    • PHOTO EXHIBITION
      “Against Forget­ting”
      This trav­el­ing Art Exhi­bi­tion gives people with Contergan/thalidomide-related disabil­i­ties a face and a voice. The portraits on display were created in 2023 as part of a book project by the Asso­ci­a­tion of Thalido­mide Victims North Rhine-Westphalia e.V. (Inter­essen­ver­band Conter­gangeschädi­ger Nordrhein-Westfalen e.V.). For this project, those affected were photographed and asked about forma­tive expe­ri­ences in their lives: their happi­est moments, diffi­cult times, and their hopes for the future.
      The exhi­bi­tion presents ten of these portraits. Accom­pa­ny­ing audio record­ings invite visi­tors to get to know the subjects better through excerpts from the interviews. 
  • ART EXHIBITIONS
    _Exhibition of Works
    Confer­ence partic­i­pants present their artwork
    _Artwork from the paint­ing work­shop
    Presen­ta­tion of results from the paint­ing work­shop with artist Eva-Maria Beneke
  • ASSISTANCE EXHIBITION
    Look at, touch, and test assis­tive devices
    During the inter­na­tional meet­ing, in addi­tion to receiv­ing advice on your ques­tions, you will have the oppor­tu­nity to calmly look at, touch and try out selected aids from very differ­ent areas of life – from every­day and dress­ing aids to aids for the bath­room and kitchen, mobil­ity aids and smart home solu­tions.
    New addi­tions include a fold­able elec­tric wheel­chair, an office chair with partic­u­larly smooth-running wheels and an elec­tric seat lift, and an elec­tric dental floss holder.
    You are also warmly invited to bring along assis­tive devices that you use your­self and present them to others as part of the exhi­bi­tion. The contact person for the exhi­bi­tion is Nina Sörensen, reach­able at n.soerensen@contergan-nrw-peer-to-peer.eu.

  • AUTO SHOW Test Drive: Discover and Try Out Mobil­ity Solu­tions
    On Thurs­day and Friday, visi­tors in Egmond aan Zee can view custom-modified vehi­cles, learn about vari­ous tech­ni­cal solu­tions, and share their expe­ri­ences with vehi­cle modi­fi­ca­tions. Several special­ized compa­nies will be on site to show­case vari­ous conver­sion options. Employ­ees from Hein­rich Kopp will be present­ing, among other things, the “Franz” foot-operated steer­ing system. In addi­tion, inter­ested visi­tors can learn about custom-made driving and steer­ing systems from Para­van and Soder­manns – and in some cases, try them out for them­selves.
    Anyone who already drives a modi­fied vehi­cle and would like to show­case it to other visi­tors is welcome to contact Sabine Göbber by email: s.goebber@contergan-nrw-peer-to-peer.eu

  • CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE

  • GRÜNENTHAL FOUNDATION

  • CONTERGAN FOUNDATION ( inquiry)

  • MORNING EXERCISE
    Seated Qigong and a bike ride through Egmond aan Zee and the surround­ing area 
  • BOWLING AND SQUASH 

  • SWIMMING AND SAUNA

  • BOOKS BY THE ASSOCIATION OF THALIDOMIDE VICTIMS (CONTERGANGESCHÄDIGTER E.V.)
    Images and Words Against Forget­ting
    To mark the 60th anniver­sary of the with­drawal of the drug thalido­mide from the market on Novem­ber 27, 1961, 65 thalido­mide victims had their portraits taken. In the photo book “Images Against Forget­ting — Portraits of Conter­gan Victims” and the accom­pa­ny­ing book “Words Against Forgetting—Conversations with Conter­gan Victims,” they share stories of their great­est joys, their saddest moments, and their dreams. These two works are not only a biograph­i­cal collec­tion for those affected by Conter­gan, their fami­lies, and their friends, but also docu­men­tary accounts by eyewit­nesses for future gener­a­tions.
    The books, published by the Inter­essen­ver­band Contergan­geschädigter NRW e.V. (Asso­ci­a­tion of Thalido­mide Victims North Rhine-Westfalia e.V.), will be avail­able for purchase during the confer­ence week. 


  • PAINTING WORKSHOP
    In this five-day paint­ing work­shop, begin­ners and advanced partic­i­pants alike can create their own artwork using acrylic paint. In addi­tion, all partic­i­pants will collab­o­rate on a large canvas to create a collec­tive piece. The work­shop will be led by artist Eva-Maria Beneke and an assis­tant.
    Paint­ing sessions will take place for five hours each day. All artworks will be presented on Satur­day evening at the Hotel Zuider­duin.
    All mate­ri­als – from canvases and easels to brushes and paints – will be provided. Partic­i­pants should be sure to bring protec­tive cloth­ing, as acrylic paint cannot be washed out.
    There are 15 spots avail­able per day. No prior expe­ri­ence is required. 

  • PICTURES AND WORDS AGAINST FORGETTING
     Tell us your story!
    The project “Pictures and Words Against Forget­ting” is enter­ing its second phase. People affected by thalido­mide are invited to have their photographs taken and share forma­tive moments from their lives in a personal inter­view. This includes happy and sad memo­ries as well as hopes and dreams for the future. 
  • EGMOND GALLERY
    You’re the star!
    For this little photo shoot, you can pose with vari­ous acces­sories. All photos taken during the confer­ence week will be featured in our Egmond Gallery. 


  • WALKS
    Guided walks through Egmond aan Zee will help you find your way around the event venue. 
  • BICYCLE SPRING TOURS
    Guided explo­ration tours through Egmond aan Zee and the surround­ing area are avail­able by bicycle.