14-25 July 2025
Cornac, France
Workshop co-created with InteR’actions
Call for application before March 15
We are all becoming aware of the impact that the societal and environmental atmosphere can have on our state of being. A profound sense of helplessness and deep pessimism can be felt. Today, it is increasingly difficult to engage. This is due to the significant rise in anxiety in our society, particularly among young people.
With Embodying Health, we want to shine a light on this ailment of our time. We aim to open dialogue, provide tools to foster calmness, and, above all, explore ways to talk about it and develop concrete and creative solutions to bring a new sense of serenity to our world.
Embodying Health is a somatic and creative retreat that fosters individual responsibility to nourish the collective. Through well-being practices (such as yoga and meditation) and personal creative expression (dance, writing, painting), we will explore, with the help of collective intelligence, the realm of possibilities to create seeds of serenity to sow within ourselves and around us.
Embodying Health will invite 30 youth workers & artists from France, Greece, Poland, Romania, Portugal and Turkey and beyond to a training & residency fostering mental health through somatic practices and collective creativity. A 10 days co-living & co-creating full immersive healthy art experience! Apply here.
Who we look for
Are you mentally challenged dealing with your emotions? Do you work with eco-anxious youth? Are you an educator, social worker, youth worker? Are you an artist, performer, visual artist, film director, screenwriter, sound designer, musician, digital content creator, writer or visionary? Wishing to work on your emotional agility through embodied and somatic practices, to create artworks about mental health?
Would you like to experience a co-living experiential art laboratory with fellow questioning creatives? Are you passionate about the body, emotions, health, advocacy and transmission?
Embodying Health is for you then!
What we offer
Embodying Health explores an innovative learning method fostering mental health and leading to the creation of an online and an offline collective exhibition.
It is a training. You will explore the use of somatic practices and embodied tools to better know and express yourself. You will dive into the depths of your own body, connect with others and our environment. At the end of the training, we want you to master a set of knowledge and tools related to mental health, embodied learning, somatic work, collective creation and action. Then you’ll help the audience you work with to do the same!
It is an art residency. You’ll be hosted in a creative rural barn to research, question, develop and confront your art vision and practices with trainers and participants. The aim will be to gradually merge your personal narrative and experience into a collective physical and digital exhibition.
At the end of Embodying Health residency-training a physical and digital exhibition will connect your artworks with the local rural community. By going digital we also look further to reach out your personal and professional networks across countries to raise awareness about mental health and inclusion.
Last but not least, Embodying Health is an inclusive experience for social connection and intercultural european dialogue taking place in Cornac, lovely French village. There will be opportunities for you to connect with neighbours and local, learn from each other and get inspired to create ever more magic!
Learning methods
Our methodology is based on somatic, creative practices, experiential learning (learn by doing it!), interdisciplinary exchange (widen your panel of knowledge!) outdoor education and non-formal education principles (explore the power of collective intelligence!)
Participants will learn through testing designed methods and reflecting upon the experience. Using a participatory approach, we encourage the exchange of experience between the participants and with the local community, fostering peer learning.
We are looking for diverse participants profiles to foster co-learning and enrich everyone’s projects with the expertise and perspective of others, to help you develop a mesmerising collective adventure!
Program
Mornings will be dedicated to embodied, somatic practices and free creative expression.
Afternoons will be time to exchange about personal and collective project evolution in peer groups, sometimes in plenary ; to consult individually with Embodying Health trainers and/or to join technical workshops to enrich your practice.
Evenings will be open for participants willing to propose activities to each other.
Day 1 | Who is who?
Day 2 | Embodying Health team building
Day 3 | Somatic Practices
Day 4 | Your heartbeat
Day 5 | Embodying Health storytelling
Day 6 | Embodying Health collective creation
Day 7 | FREE DAY
Day 8 | Embodying Health dream
Day 9 | Embodying Health event
Day 10 | Evaluation & learning outcomes
Venue & travel
Embodying Health activities will take place in France, in the Occitanie region, in the village of Cornac.
We require all participants and organisers to engage in green travel, using exclusively sustainable low-emissions means of transport such as bus, train or car-pooling (no plane!). You can enjoy up to 6 days of travelling! We will be able to reimburse your travel costs up to a maximum amount of 320€. Food and accommodation are provided for free, thanks to the support of the Erasmus+ programme.
Trainers
Anne Merlin
is a creativity explorer. Whilst studying visual arts and interaction design in France, she discovered the magic of creativity mixed with collective intelligence and social action. She lived in Greece, Brazil, Seychelles, Portugal and a few more countries, experimenting with ever more creative ways to interact and discover one another in multilingual or non verbal settings. Along the way, she collected myriads of tools & methods for collaborative creation, nature-based learning, emotional intelligence, specializing in storytelling, team dynamics and project design using creativity, movement, emotions and stories to foster well-being, cooperation & social action.
Jayaji Julien Dejean
defies conventional categorization. Shaped by societal challenges yet fiercely retaining his integrity and authenticity, he has carved a unique path dedicated to empowering individuals. Jayaji's journey spans diverse disciplines. He has served as a teacher of spiritual practices like Yoga and Flow, alongside artistic pursuits in visual arts, acting, and writing. This multifaceted background, enriched by both triumphs and obstacles, has equipped him with a profound understanding of the human experience. Jayaji's passion lies in transmission, sharing his learnings with attentiveness and empathy. He envisions education as a collaborative journey, guiding individuals towards discovering their agency and responsibility within the world. Driven by the belief that a better world hinges on personal empowerment, Jayaji facilitates spiritual and creative processes. These methods aim to liberate participants emotionally, reignite creative expression, and cultivate a vibrant zest for life.
European partners
All For One & One For all, Greece
All for One & One for All empowers youth through informal education, mental health awareness, arts, and sustainability, fostering inclusion and solidarity.
The Foundation, established in May 2020, strengthens civil society and promotes economic diplomacy in Silesia. It focuses on innovation, education, entrepreneurship, and international cooperation, while supporting local governments and youth through EU projects and cross-border partnerships.
Pirilampos, Portugal
Pirilampos is a youth association using performing arts to address racism, sexism, xenophobia, and promote intercultural awareness. It fosters positive citizenship, diversity, and community through creative projects, particularly for young people with fewer opportunities. The association also shares its work within cultural and educational networks in Portugal and Europe.
TeacherME Community, launched in 2020 by Maria Zancu, supports young teachers in Romania and promotes socio-emotional development and mental health awareness among youth.
