Stop. Reflect. Do Better!

The idea

With the Stop. Reflect. Do Better project we invite you to stop for a moment, and dedicate time to your capacity and well-being as youth workers, coordinators, managers, educators, and peace activists! 

The overall project aim is to:

• support the well-being of professionals, youth workers, coordinators, and peace activists,
• build further their competences and capacities of the organisations in providing quality voluntary and educational activities for young people.

Why do we do it?

• our lives as peace activists and youth workers are full of tasks and the to-do list is never-ending, with piles of unexpected challenges or complications,
• we know that moments of rest and reflection are needed but they often seem to be an unrealistic luxury,
• as organisations, we need to find a new way to effectively and positively deal with the new reality and to support the well-being and flourishing of our teams,
• once we manage to find our own balance, we will be again capable of providing a quality youth work to help and support young people.

We are a partnership of 10 organisations: SCI Poland (leader), CVS Bulgaria, SCI Catalunya, SCI Germany, Útilapu Hungary, VSI Ireland, SCI Italy, CID North Macedonia, Para Onde? Portugal and Zavod Voluntariat – SCI Slovenia.

The activities

During our project, we are:

• learning and applying the good mechanisms of taking care of the mental health and well-being of our youth workers,
• building further their competences in working with volunteers, young people, and local communities in times of constant change.

The project has 8 main components:

1. Set-up phase (9.2023-1.2024)

2. Training Course: “Empowering Youth Workers: Building Resilience and Managing Stress” (22-29.02.2024)
International training course with 33 participants from 10 countries, to take place in Poznań, Poland. Key aspects: well-being, happiness, how to deal with stress, mindfulness, and a survival kit for VUCA times.

3. Webinars on well-being (3-5.2024)
During the project, we are organising 3 webinars supporting the youth worker’s well-being. The topics are: “Stress Management” (13.04.2024), “Emotional Self-Care” (11.04.2024) and “Positive Psychology Tools for Well-Being” (22.05.2024).

4. Training Course: “Mindful Youth Work: Cultivating Well-Being in Yourself and Others” (9-16.05.2024)
The second international training course in Poznań, Poland. Key aspects: quality youth work, nonviolent communication, emotional and social intelligence, inclusion and diversity.

5. Follow-up local actions (3-9.2024)
Practising the learning moments in national teams, organising and running activities on a local level under our mentoring.

6. Publishing Well-Being Cards (9.2024)
Cards to support the inner peace and mental health of youth workers and the groups they work with. Scroll down for more details!

7. Dissemination (3-10.2024)
Spreading tangible project results (e.g. practices, workshop scenarios) and the Well-Being Cards across our countries and beyond, e.g. through the Open Webinar!

8. Evaluation (11.2024)

Our training courses

“Mindful Youth Work: Cultivating Well-Being
in Yourself and Others”
9-16 May 2024
Poznań, Poland

At the training course, 30 youth workers, coordinators  and peace activists will:
• enlarge knowledge about mental health and well-being,
• improve self-regulation and relationship management,
• acquire conflict resolution skills,
• exchange ideas, good practices, inspirations, and share resources,
• plan follow-up actions to take place in their local communities upon the course completion.

Apply now! Last places left!

Well-Being Cards

In 2024, we will develop pocket-size “Well-Being Cards”.
They will be a tool for sustaining daily individual and group well-being of youth workers, professionals, leaders, activists, educators and trainers, and everyone who works in the youth field. The Cards will include good practices and innovative ideas; and will be suitable for individual and group use. Each set will consist of around 40 cards. Additionally, an online version will be available for download.
The Well-Being Cards will be presented to the public during the Open Webinar in October 2024

Results

For our individual project participants:

• increased self-awareness, motivation and self-confidence to provide quality youth work,
• better understanding of contemporary challenges and how well-being can be sustained in such conditions,
• improved competences and knowledge of specific tools to be used in regular work with young people.

For our partner organisations:

• improved atmosphere and working environment,
• increased capacity of the professionals in the organisations,
• better quality of youth work provided to young people (online and offline).

For European youth work:

• international opportunities for quality learning experiences on the topic of well-being and mental health through our webinars, training courses and the local follow-up activities,
• better understanding of how to maintain well-being of the youth and the youth workers and activists,
• strengthened quality of youth work.

With small steps that will start within our project, the butterfly effect will be observed: the participants will bring impact on the organisations and further on the young people they work with, through them – on the local communities, then further to Europe.

Sustaining well-being starts first with a single individual, but the combined effect of single numerous efforts brings a change to a healthier world!

The Team

The Donor

Our project is co-funded by the European Union. We are very thankful for making our idea possible to realise thanks to this support!
Project number 2023-1-PL01-KA153-YOU-000148664