History

A black and white picture of the first Dark event in Frankfurt. Visitors explore a parcour that was set up with ropes leading through the dark.

The concept of Dialogue in the Dark was founded by Dr. Andreas Heinecke in 1988. After his studies in Philosophy, Andreas started working at a radio-station in his hometown Baden-Baden, Germany. One day he was asked to develop a work training for a young journalist, who had lost his eyesight through a tragic car accident. Andreas had no clue about disability and he could not imagine how life without eyesight could be of value. But the encounter with the blind journalist changed his life. The blind colleague was a very optimistic, straightforward guy with a great sense of humor who coped with his condition perfectly well. Andreas understood that being blind contains a potential he had never thought about.

Photo of a yellow door with a yellow and black walking stick hanging at the handle.

Prejudice about blindness is widespread and Andreas witnessed that blind people do not have equal access to education and the labor market. Deciding to continue working in the field of inclusion of people with disabilities, he wanted to create an event: Why not turn off the light, darken a room, and invite blind and sighted people to meet under reverse conditions? Andreas started to experiment with ropes and sounds in the dark and opened the first Dialogue in the Dark exhibition in Germany in 1989.

It was then that Andreas became a social entrepreneur, dedicating his life to promote the concept of the exhibition. A stony road in the beginning, the idea grew steadily and new formats like Dinner in the Dark (created in 1993), and business workshops in the dark (developed in 1994) were added.

Today Dialogue in the Dark is an international network with presence in more than 47 countries as Exhibition, Workshops, Dinner in the Dark or an additional edutainment formats in their cultural context. More than 9 million visitors have gone through an experience in the Dark and thousands of blind guides and facilitators find employment through exhibitions and workshops. Internationally acclaimed, Dialogue in the Dark is one of the best-known social business concepts worldwide.

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