From 1 to 3 September 2025, the MPAS project organised its Training of Trainers in Athens, Greece, as part of Work Package 3, dedicated to capacity building and training. The activity brought together 11 multiplier artists selected from the members and regular collaborators of the partner organisations, with the aim of preparing them to replicate and adapt the MPAS methodology in their own countries and local contexts.
The Training of Trainers was a key milestone for the project, as it strengthened the capacity of the partnership to deliver high-quality MPAS-based training activities beyond the central project team. Participants were introduced to the MPAS methodological framework and Toolkit, while also developing facilitation competences related to safe spaces, inclusion, ethical sensitivity and mental health prevention. The training also supported participants in connecting their artistic practice with prevention-oriented mental health outcomes and in reflecting on how the methodology can be transferred across different cultural and community settings.
The three-day programme followed an experiential and interdisciplinary approach, combining performing arts, body-based work, voice, rhythm, music, storytelling, theoretical input, methodological discussion and group reflection. The training progressively explored the core dimensions of MPAS, including identity, belonging, life purpose, emotional regulation, resilience, and the creation of safe and inclusive spaces.
The first day focused on identity, belonging and safe spaces. Participants explored the MPAS framework through narrative and embodied practices such as inner character work, personal myth, “Between Home and Elsewhere”, “Stories that Shape Us”, voice work and sound-based activities. The second day deepened the embodied and relational dimension of the methodology through movement and connection practices based on elements such as earth, fire and water, while also examining the mental health prevention benefits of the activities. The third day focused on narrative transformation, rhythm, music, integration and closure, including activities such as “The Call for Adventure”, “The Refusal”, “Shaking Hands with the Monster”, “The Tribe” and “Celebrate Your Inner Joy”.
The evaluation of the training, based on pre- and post-training questionnaires, showed a clear increase in participants’ understanding of MPAS as an integrated approach. Participants reported stronger confidence in facilitation, better understanding of the links between art and mental health prevention, and increased capacity to explain and transmit the methodology to others. They also expressed high readiness to implement national training activities, while identifying practical support needs such as dissemination tools, outreach examples, peer exchange and occasional mentoring.
Overall, the Training of Trainers in Athens created a qualified pool of MPAS multipliers across partner countries and reinforced the transferability and sustainability of the project. By combining artistic practice, embodied learning, narrative work and mental health prevention, the training helped ensure that the MPAS methodology and Toolkit can continue to be used, adapted and shared in different national, artistic, educational and community contexts.
