Together for the mind - Portugal

In July 2025, the first part of the youth exchange "Together for the Mind" took place, an Erasmus+ project run by Cooperative Fjället together with partner organizations from Portugal 🇵🇹, Italy 🇮🇹, and Jordan 🇯🇴.

The Swedish group traveled to Lisbon, Portugal, where young people from four countries gathered to explore mental health, safety, and well-being from young people's perspectives. The week was based on the idea that the participants themselves helped shape the content—from planning and structuring to carrying out activities and reflections.

During the exchange, the participants worked with questions such as:

• How does mental health feel in the body and in everyday life?

• What do people need to feel safe in a group?

• How can movement, dance, and play affect how we feel?

• How can we dare to talk about difficult things?

The week was filled with physical activities, creative workshops, group discussions, cultural exchange, and time to build relationships across languages and countries. The young participants tried dance, cooperative games, nature walks, reflection circles, and creative expression—all on their own terms.

One of the strongest outcomes was how quickly trust and a sense of community developed. Participants who had previously found it difficult to put their feelings into words began to do so. Many described that they felt seen, safe, and valued within the group.

As a final result, the young participants created:

• a video interview about the exchange

• an information flyer about the project

• a photo book from the week

• a video summarizing everything that happened in Portugal

Picture Book

Information Flyer