Devoting one's life and work to austistic people

The ‘La Bourguette’ association was set up in 1973 as a project devised by Georges Soleilhet. It funded the development of institutions for autistic children and adults. In the Vaucluse département, there is a special aids school which deals with twenty-eight children, and an institute dealing with thirty-eight adults. The institute specialises in helping autistic adults in the workplace (établissement spécialisé d'aide au travail (ESAT)). In the Var département, there is a centre for twenty-seven people. This centre prepares adults for the transition to an ESAT which can handle twelve adults. Everyone takes part in activities which are closely linked to the land, involving life and its essential needs. These include agricultural production (bread-making, viticulture, the manufacture of olive oil), the management of an hotel and a shop, and a ceramics and furniture workshop. Life in the community is organised around village centres which promotes neighbourly relationships and mutual recognition. In these circumstances, the autistic person, whose natural behaviour often varies between having very close friendships and being a loner, becomes more stable and can become an individual with unexpected talents.