EKO is happy to announce that one more amazing youth exchange has been completed successfully. The “Moving for mental health” project united 42 young participants from Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkiye, North Macedonia and Croatia. It was organized by the Croatian organization ARGONAUTA and took place in Šibenik, (Croatia) from 01 to 10 April 2024. 

Aims & Objectives of the project 

The aim of the training course “Moving for mental health” was to bring young people to Croatia to work together in mental health through dancing and sports. Bringing 42 participants together helped inspire each other with methods for improving their well-being and sharing them in their local communities.  Communities. The goal was to raise their awareness about the current state of mental health in their communities and boost their emotional and physical state through learning how to use their body more effectively and creatively. This will foster social engagement and active participation of the young people involved in this project. 

More specifically the objectives were:

• Promote cultural diversity, allowing them to learn about other cultures while living and working in mixed nationalities.
• Raise awareness about the current mental health of young people through the exploration of experiences in their local communities, reducing the stigma about taboo topics.
• Reflect on the effect that body movement has on physical well-being, overcoming negative attitudes and boosting the confidence and self-esteem of the participants.

Workshops & Activities of the project 

Through this project, participants had the opportunity to get better in some key competencies such as multilingual competence, personal, social and learning to learn competence. They worked with a non-formal methodology on topics like mental health, self-esteem and how to deal with stress. During the project, they participated in physical activities, yoga, sports and traditional dances. The highlight of the project was the two visits the organization prepared, one in the town center and one in an island, where  the participants learned more about  the local culture and traditions. Overall it was a very nice experience for all the participants, who connected better with themselves and felt free to share with others their concerns on mental health. 

Dissemination Activities

After the project ended the team members organized many dissemination activities with their local community, friends and family.

The team leader, Nektarios, was invited to a big event about Erasmus+ that took place in Athens. There he had the chance to present the project, its objectives, and the outcome. Also, he shared with the people who attended the event, his personal experience as a participant and a team leader.