MINDBLOOM – Mental Health, Inclusion, and Democratic Participation: Building a Learning and Outreach-Oriented Model for All Children, is a 2-year project (February 2026- January 2028) that aims to strengthen democratic participation among unaccompanied youths, whose life experience have often limited their opportunities for substantive engagement in civic life.
By prioritising emotional well-being, MINDBLOOM seeks to foster empowerment and meaningful participation for unaccompanied minor. Rather than simply integrating them into existing systems, the project focuses on reconfiguring these systems to better reflect and respond to their needs and lived experiences, while at the same time creating safe spaces in which they can actively engage and grow.
How can unaccompanied minor’s well-being be achieved?
Recognising that unaccompanied minors often begin their journeys having faced traumatic experiences, difficult decisions, displacement, and significant emotional burdens, MINDBLOOM adopts a holistic and child-centred approach to support their well-being and social inclusion.
Through the application of trauma-sensitive techniques, play-based activities, dialogue and participatory approaches with the youths; MINDBLOOM will support them to co-create their experiences and become active agents in their own lives. As a result, minors will be empowered to make informed decisions, feel safe, and develop a stronger sense of belonging within their local communities.
The MINDBLOOM project is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Value Programme (CERV) programme of the European Union with a focus on the rights of the child and children’s participation, and brings together a multidisciplinary consortium of partners from 4 European Countries:
- Portugal: University Institute of Lisbon- ISCTE (Coordinator), InPulsar- Associação Para o Desenvolvimento Comunitário, Associação das Aldeias de Crianças SOS Portugal, Casa Pia de Lisboa (CPL)
- Κύπρος: University of Limassol (UoL), Hope for Children-CRC Policy Center (HFC)
- Bulgaria: Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD), RE-ACT
- Austria: InterAktion
The partnership’s first face-to-face meeting took place in Lisbon, at the University Institute of Lisbon (ISCTE), on 21-22 April 2026. During the two-day kick-off, partners reviewed progress, aligned expectations, and defined next steps for the project’s implementation.
A noteworthy conference open to the community was also held, featuring guest speakers, Mónica López (University of Groningen) and Sofie Denise de Smet (KU Leuven). Through their work, they brought to the forefront the need for long‑term support for professionals working with children, as well as the importance of ensuring that children are properly informed, listened to, and meaningfully involved. The complex trauma experienced by migrant children was also discussed, underscoring the need for trauma-informed approaches. The conference concluded with a powerful and deeply moving testimony from a young migrant, reflecting on their lived experiences.
The next steps of the project entail the design and implementation of co‑creation workshops with unaccompanied minors, enabling them to contribute insights that will guide the collaborative development of activities and models aimed at enhancing children’s meaningful participation, with their well‑being established as a central priority.
Stay connected to the UoL Research Center for more information on the project’s actions and initiatives.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or Agência Nacional para a Gestão do Programa Erasmus+ Educação e Formação. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
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