Erasmus+, Key action 1: training course
Dates: 25—31 March 2026
Venue: Trbovlje, Slovenia
Czech team: 3 participants – youth workers
Please read the info-pack.
Hosting organisation: ASPIRA Institute
Project report:
If you’re not short of wonder, you’ve certainly heard of this little country with big aspirations called Slovenia. And no! It’s not Slovakia! Although both countries are undoubtably beautiful and endearing with their endless possibilities, Slovenia is the one who held a project from the 25th of March until the 31st of March 2026 in Trbovlje called Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Competence, which makes their country come out on top. You see, there isn’t much that can compare to quality projects quite like these. Alongside the Greek, Lithuanian, Italian, Slovenian, Croatian and Bosnian teams, us Czechs got to work on something that cannot be described in other words than a passion project.
When I say a project of quality, I speak of one with a capital V for Value. You see, from start to finish we’ve been nothing but pampered by both the sending and receiving organizations when it came to administration, workshops and care. I reckon the pitch perfect and punctual organization of Rada and Katka was what allowed us to get the most out of this wonderful opportunity. Throughout the project we worked with Tatiana, a clinical psychologist, a studied psychotherapist and most importantly a mature self-realized woman, who has with the magic of Gestalt psychology, lead us to a spiritual awakening.
One training in particular speaks for the whole experience itself. Our diverse group of open-minded people were given the task to materialize their demon into a physical form with clay. With respect for boundaries and personal mental space, we were then told to challenge the demon with questions, and if possible, cleanse it. A quest like this, where on top of everything had to work in pairs, made many of turn to parts of oneself that we looked after the least. After this experience we felt very uplifted, wanting to talk to each other about it, eager to broaden our perspective.
Of course needless to say, we’ve secondarily learned a lot about Slovenian culture and the history of the local people. Trbovlje is a small mining town that just like us evolved and transformed itself a lot over a short period of time. I believe there is no other word poignant enough to describe the project other than mesmerizing. As I stood on the train station leaving the town and people behind pondering, I couldn’t help but wonder, how can one week be so shape-shifting.
Jakub H.
