As the world faces ever-growing social and cultural challenges, focusing on personal andinterpersonal wellbeing is crucial. It was this thought that guided the conception andrealization of the Erasmus+ “Bodywise – Wise Bodies” Project. This collaborative initiativeinvolved partners from Estonia, Italy, and Austria, all united in their mission to explorediverse art, theatrical and movement methods aimed at enhancing body awareness andwellbeing among trainers and other professionals who work with marginalized anddisadvantaged groups daily. By doing so, the project aspired to empower marginalized groups, bridging cultural gaps, and fostering mutual understanding.

Why focus on trainers and professionals?

Trainers and other professionals working with marginalized and disadvantaged groups are ofcrucial importance in creating inclusive and supportive environments. These professionalsoften play a bigger and more difficult role than we think: they build bridges, leveraging bothverbal and non-verbal communication to connect with their participants. Recognizing thatwords constitute only a part of communication, with the remaining greater part relying onnon-verbal cues, these professionals must develop effective communication skills and theyneed to be able to listen in an active and empathic way. This sensitivity allows them tounderst and the unspoken needs and experiences of their participants, fostering a safe and trusting environment that is essential for inclusion and personal and communal development.The Bodywise-wise Bodies project focused on several key objectives to enhance the capabilities of these professionals:

● Body Awareness: Improving skills and competences related to body awareness.

● Connecting with Marginalized and Discriminated People: finding tools and methods to build meaningful connections with individuals from marginalized communities.

● Releasing Mental Stress: Utilizing innovative methods to alleviate mental stress.With this in mind, our project target group were trainers, educators, social workers and coaches, who would like to train to empathize (more) with their target group. Furthermore,we tested the activities with trainers working with marginalized groups of people, e.g.language teachers working with migrants or unemployed people. At the same time, we saw these methods are useful for all types of pedagogues, trainers, facilitators, coaches, social workers and all people, who work with human beings in order to become more sensitive to the emotions and sensations of the people they are working with.

Which tools and methods?

In recent years, body awareness ; has become a significant area of scientific research across various fields, including health, behavior, anthropology, and philosophy. Defined as an attentional focus on body sensations (Mehling et al., 2009), body awareness is closely linked to the concept of embodiment—the felt sense of being localized within one’s physical body (Arzy et al., 2006; Roher, 2007; Edelman, 2004). This idea challenges the Cartesiandualism of mind and body, suggesting instead that consciousness is embodied (Edelman,2004). Various traditions and techniques aim to enhance body awareness and "embodiedpresence" to reduce stress and promote well-being (Mehling et al., 2009). 

There is no consensus on the specific skills needed for body awareness, but mindfulnessskills such as sustained attention, concentration, non-reactivity, and non-judgment arebelieved to be crucial. These skills help create a state of present-moment awareness ofbodily events, contributing to overall well-being (Mehling et al., 2009). Scientific literatureincreasingly supports the benefits of body awareness in reducing stress and promotinghealth.A study by Berkovich-Ohana et al. (2018) highlights how being present and aware of ourbodies helps teachers regulate their emotions better. This awareness reduces stress, lowersself-criticism, and improves overall well-being and social-emotional skills, which are essentialfor creating positive learning environments.Building on this data, the Bodywise Project team decided to share and explore differenttypes of body-sensing activities including mindful breathing, walking, dancing, meditating,mirroring and acting.

 The selected activities came from or were inspired by differentmethodologies and fields in a multidisciplinary perspective: mindfulness, theater gamesinspired by classical theater didactics and the work of Agosto Boal, Social PresencingTheatre (SPT) of Arawana Hayashi, and dance therapy. 

The activities were chosen carefullyto promote body awareness and include in different degrees a creative and artistic slant: thischoice was based on the document by the World Health Organisation titled “What is theevidence on the role of the arts in improving health and well-being? A scoping review”(Fancourt & Finn for WHO, 2019) that conceptually links the engagement in art andexpressive activities to health outcomes.During the development of the project, 12 professionals participated in our laboratories andonline sessions and tested the proposed activities. Their feedback included a range ofpositive emotions, openness to exploration, mindfulness, gratitude, and a heightenedawareness of one's body and well-being. Participants valued the experience and expresseda desire for personal growth and self-care.

Learn more about our project result: take a look at the other available articles, our websiteand our YouTube channel!