For your and my wellbeing! A week of connection and discovery

For your and my wellbeing: In the summer of 2023, 34 young people from six countries participated in a youth exchange organized by the Romanian Angel Appeal. During this project, the participants engaged in activities, discussions, and visits centered around mental health.

The Youth Exchange featured non-formal educational activities such as interviews, design thinking, brainstorming sessions, videos, world cafe discussions, music, storytelling, and facilitated discussions. All these activities aimed to create a clearer vision of how young people want adults to talk to them about mental health.

An essential element of these activities was the cultural evenings, games, traditional dances, and the desire to share pieces of each participant’s culture. These unique methods provided young people the opportunity to learn about other cultures and make new friends.

At the end of a busy week, we expect to see how mental health messages are promoted among young people.

Katerina from Greece perfectly described the state of wellbeing each of us should have: “Your needs are met, nothing can negatively affect you because you know your worth and abilities, and others’ reactions do not affect your mood. You take criticism as positive feedback for your growth and ignore any negative comments that undermine your confidence.”

We analyzed mental health messages conveyed through various channels, such as music or memes, because, after all, we are addressing Generation Z. After seeing what others do, we thought about what we could do. Thus, we created songs, stories, flyers, or memes about how we express our feelings.

It was a week full of surprises, where we had the opportunity to learn and understand how young people perceive and discuss mental health. Amid difficult discussions, we also had many moments of fun and deep connection.