MINDBLOOM project's Conference
- CIS-Iscte

- Apr 8
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 16
The project MINDBLOOM - Mental Health, Inclusion, and Democratic Participation: Building a Learning and Outreach-Oriented Model for All Children, funded by the European Commission (CERV-2025-CHILD-101253577) will hold a presentation conference open to the community at Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, in Lisbon.
On April 22 afternoon (14:00-18:00), MINDBLOOM's team will present the international project, and the community national partners (Casa Pia, InPulsar, and Aldeias de Crianças SOS) in an event dedicated to the theme of "Children's Rights and Participation: From Mental Health to Co-Decision". The conference will also count with the participation of two invited keynote speakers: Mónica López López (University of Groningen), on Child Participation Approaches and Sofie Denise de Smet (KU Leuven), on Refugee Youth Mental Health. The full program is available below.

FULL PROGRAM
14:00 - Institutional Welcome and Opening session
14:30 – 15:00 - Project MINDBLOOM
Afxentis Afxentiou (University of Limassol) & Project Team (HFC, CSD, Re-Act, InterAktion)
Moderator: Carla Moleiro (Iscte)
15:00 – 16:45 - Invited Speakers
Mónica López López (University of Groningen) - Listened to and taken seriously: A research journey on children's participation in Child Protection
Sofie Denise de Smet (KU Leuven) - Transcultural trauma care for refugee youth: The role of social support structures in family and community relationships
Moderator: Eunice Magalhães (Iscte)
Coffee break
17:00 –18:00 Round Table: Practices & Testimonies
Carla Recio (Casa Pia de Lisboa)
Leonor Narciso (Aldeias de Crianças SOS)
Carolina Cravo (InPulsar)
Kifayat Ullah (Pakistan)
Moderator: Sandra Roberto (Iscte, University of Lisbon)
Closing
MINDBLOOM recognizes that children’s and youths’ democratic participation depends on psychological well-being. By addressing trauma, instability, and neglect, the project aims to promote mental health and the emotional conditions needed for unaccompanied children and youth to develop agency, empowerment, and meaningful civic participation.




