Eco-centric development for inclusion and empowerment

This training course is a unique experience created from a blend of nature immersion, personal transformation and professional development. During the training process we will explore and experience a wide variety of concepts such as eco-centric development, understanding the youth, nature based therapeutic practices, nature connection, mentoring, emotional intelligence etc.

Through this training we support the participants in exploring these concepts within the context of their personal and professional life. The practices which will be experienced during the course will be translated into educational tools, methods and activities that can be used in the youth field, for the personal and professional development of young people.

Why do we make this project?

The aim of the project is to increase the capacity of youth workers to improve the social and professional access, participation and learning outcomes of young people from disadvantaged groups. We are reaching this aim by providing a deep experiential process which Is based on eco-centric development and nature-based learning.

Our intentions or the project objectives are:

- Increasing the understanding of the specifics and characteristics of young people from disadvantaged groups.

- Increasing the understanding of the social, professional and cultural access of young people from disadvantaged groups.

- Equipping 25 youth workers with professional skills to use effective and quality educational tools, methods and concepts, in order to work with young people from disadvantaged groups.

- Increasing the personal and professional motivation of 25 youth workers from 9 countries to work with young people from disadvantaged groups.

The topics and elements of the training course

- Eco-centric and holistic development – we will explore and work with the concepts and elements of Eco-centric Developmental (The Soulcentric Developmental Wheel and The Nature Based Map of the Human Psyche, developed by the American psychologist Bill Plotkin). We will find how these tools can be used in youth work, in order to facilitate the authentic development of youth and their transition from adolescence into adulthood.

- Connection with nature – we will spend as much time outdoors as we can. Some of the practices and activities will take place in the wild nature. We will experience activities and exercises which will facilitate a deep connection with nature, in order to experience its empowering benefits.

- Mentoring and individual support – we will work with different concepts and techniques for mentoring and one to one work. We will practice deep listening, the art of asking questions, mirroring the stories of the people and personal tracking.

- Self-discovery and cultivation of inner resources – the participants will go through a process of personal development which will strengthen their inner capacities and will empower them on various levels and dimensions.

- Emotional intelligence – we will work with emotions in order to cultivate the abilities for feeling, understanding and integrating emotions. We will cultivate the empathy and the capacity for compassionate presence.

Practices and activities

During the training course we will experience a wide variety of practices such as: Nature connection, Group discussions, Individual work, The Way of Council, Presentations and analysis, Exchange of good practices, Understanding youth, Mentoring, Deep listening, Asking questions, Mirroring, Personal tracking, Reflection groups, Peer to peer learning, Experiential games, Movement and music, Embodiment, Artwork and poetry, Living as a community, Application and practice, Future cooperation etc.

Location and accommodation

The program will take place in a beautiful and wild area, in the Carpathian Mountains, near the village Răchițele. A village located at 850 m altitude and around 85 km from Cluj-Napoca.