Pathway to Mindfulness
Pathway to Mindfulness - emotional and social balancing initiative of the “Digital
Natives” generation
Călărași, 20.08.2021 - In the era of FOMO, selfie, Tik-tok and Instagram, 42 young people
from Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and Spain have
participated between 20-26th of August in a European youth mobility to explore ways of
“digital detoxification” and social reconnection through outdoor activities, mindfulness
and education in a non-formal context. The youth exchange is part of the Pathway to
Mindfulness project, coordinated by the Monomyths Association and co-funded by
Erasmus +.
The social distance from the pandemic period further influenced young people to become
excessive consumers of technology and to seek refuge in social networks and video games,
being exposed to a sedentary lifestyle, fake-news, cyber-bullying and aggression and leading to
a deficit of attention.
To counteract these negative effects, the Monomyths Association hosts between 20-26th of
August 2021 a mobility dedicated to young people from seven European Union member states
during which they analyze effective solutions to support adolescents and young people through
mindfulness, outdoor education and in context non-formal.
“Smartphones have become an extension of our body, technology and social networks have
become ubiquitous in the lives of young people. There are rare moments when we manage to
detach ourselves from the avalanche of information, to find a free moment from notifications and
social media. Although we are digitally hyperconnected, we are disconnected from ourselves
and those around us, without anchors of emotional balancing and recalibration of attention. We
notice that young people who are digitally exposed for long periods to social media icons and
influencers live with the impression that they do, live and enjoy too little. We want to encourage
young people to take a break from this digital noise and to rediscover the joy of being in nature,
to have a meaningful conversation and to rediscover their creativity ", said Luminița Ene, project
coordinator.
The 42 participants will develop together a collection of challenges that will encourage young
people to reconnect with themselves and those around them, to remember who they are in the
absence of social networks and influencers, to develop healthy habits, to become present and
enjoy the offline opportunities that they can access. These challenges will be subsequently
tested and promoted in 7 local workshops -Mindful Stories- with 140 young people from the
home communities of the participants.
The seven youth organizations involved - Monomyths Association (Romania), Tarptautinis
bendradarbiavimo centras (Lithuania), Diabetes, prediabetes and metabolic syndrome
(Bulgaria), Petrklíč help (Czech Republic), Youth Mobility Center (Greece), 4YOUth Foundation
for Supporting Youth (Poland) and Xano Channel Asociación para el desarrollo comunitario,
(Spain) propose alternatives and activities to help young people to prevent addiction to screen
and social networks, to have good mental health by maintaining face-to-face social interactions,
increasing level of physical activity and encouraging going out in nature. The project is co-
financed by the European Commission's Erasmus + program.
Natives” generation
Călărași, 20.08.2021 - In the era of FOMO, selfie, Tik-tok and Instagram, 42 young people
from Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and Spain have
participated between 20-26th of August in a European youth mobility to explore ways of
“digital detoxification” and social reconnection through outdoor activities, mindfulness
and education in a non-formal context. The youth exchange is part of the Pathway to
Mindfulness project, coordinated by the Monomyths Association and co-funded by
Erasmus +.
The social distance from the pandemic period further influenced young people to become
excessive consumers of technology and to seek refuge in social networks and video games,
being exposed to a sedentary lifestyle, fake-news, cyber-bullying and aggression and leading to
a deficit of attention.
To counteract these negative effects, the Monomyths Association hosts between 20-26th of
August 2021 a mobility dedicated to young people from seven European Union member states
during which they analyze effective solutions to support adolescents and young people through
mindfulness, outdoor education and in context non-formal.
“Smartphones have become an extension of our body, technology and social networks have
become ubiquitous in the lives of young people. There are rare moments when we manage to
detach ourselves from the avalanche of information, to find a free moment from notifications and
social media. Although we are digitally hyperconnected, we are disconnected from ourselves
and those around us, without anchors of emotional balancing and recalibration of attention. We
notice that young people who are digitally exposed for long periods to social media icons and
influencers live with the impression that they do, live and enjoy too little. We want to encourage
young people to take a break from this digital noise and to rediscover the joy of being in nature,
to have a meaningful conversation and to rediscover their creativity ", said Luminița Ene, project
coordinator.
The 42 participants will develop together a collection of challenges that will encourage young
people to reconnect with themselves and those around them, to remember who they are in the
absence of social networks and influencers, to develop healthy habits, to become present and
enjoy the offline opportunities that they can access. These challenges will be subsequently
tested and promoted in 7 local workshops -Mindful Stories- with 140 young people from the
home communities of the participants.
The seven youth organizations involved - Monomyths Association (Romania), Tarptautinis
bendradarbiavimo centras (Lithuania), Diabetes, prediabetes and metabolic syndrome
(Bulgaria), Petrklíč help (Czech Republic), Youth Mobility Center (Greece), 4YOUth Foundation
for Supporting Youth (Poland) and Xano Channel Asociación para el desarrollo comunitario,
(Spain) propose alternatives and activities to help young people to prevent addiction to screen
and social networks, to have good mental health by maintaining face-to-face social interactions,
increasing level of physical activity and encouraging going out in nature. The project is co-
financed by the European Commission's Erasmus + program.