Youth Mental Health Lab#1 - Ukraine

Organised by NGO “Youth Space”, Uzhhorod, 20. 12. 2024

On December 20, 2024, the first working group meeting of the Youth Mental Health Lab of the MEET project took place in Uzhhorod. The event brought together educators, psychologists, youth workers, and representatives of civil society organizations who joined forces to find solutions in the field of youth mental health in Ukraine.

The meeting began with a presentation of the MEET project and its key objectives and included several sessions where participants worked in groups, including:

The session titled "Achieving Common Understanding" aimed to build consensus among stakeholders regarding key mental health issues faced by Ukrainian youth. During this session, participants examined challenges specific to different target groups: NEET youth, Roma youth, and ESL youth. They identified key mental health problems affecting young people, emphasizing issues such as widespread psychological exhaustion, the negative impact of social media, post-traumatic stress disorder caused by the war, social isolation, and the lack of safe spaces in educational institutions. Participants also highlighted the insufficient number of school psychologists, parental misunderstanding of children's mental health issues, and the lack of face-to-face communication skills among teenagers.

During the "Building Solutions" session, participants identified specific ways to address the previously outlined challenges. Key solutions included psychological education for parents, students, and teachers; promoting mentorship support for youth; introducing modern approaches to physical education; and integrating media literacy into school curricula. Additionally, a catalog of best practices was presented, followed by discussions and feedback collection.

Next session focused on discussing and planning further actions regarding who and how should implement the discussed solutions on the path toward piloting the Youth Mental Health Labs.

Finally, participants shared their impressions of the Lab's work, identified the strengths and weaknesses of this format, and provided feedback.

We look forward to refining these ideas in the coming labs and building sustainable support networks. The next meeting of the Lab is scheduled for March-April 2025 in Uzhhorod.