Project summary
Young people's mental health in the EU is a big concern. Behind the cold statistics lie young lives crushed by depression and anxiety. Suicide is now the second leading cause of death for EU youth. Our youth are also inheriting a troubled world, from climate change to COVID-19, who experienced anxiety and psychological problems with heavy consequences on their motivation and overall emotional well-being. Young people are grappling with feelings of loneliness and societal expectations that they struggle to meet. In addition, adolescents can be particularly vulnerable due to risk factors that can contribute to stress during adolescence, such as a desire for greater autonomy, pressure to conform with peers, exploration of sexual identity, and increased access to and use of technology. This is why HARMONY aims to work collaboratively and with a comprehensive approach across European regions and cities to improve public policies on youth mental health which requires not only a medical treatment but a holistic approach with the participation of all the community actors.
HARMONY has merged a partnership composed by different local, regional and national key actors from health, youth and educational fields with complementary knowledge, experience and different level of development in terms of public community-based policies on youth mental health. Partners are the Youth Service – Municipality of Murcia (ES) as Lead partner; National Youth Agency (ALB); Flanders Department of Culture, Youth and Media (BE); Ministry of Health of Lithuania; Federal Ministry of Health of Bosnia; Regional Council of Normadie (FR); Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth (PT); Regional Department of Education of Varna (BU) and Diaconia University of Applied Science (FI) as AP09. With 89% of EU citizens recognizing mental health promotion, there is a compelling need to address these disparities and support youth mental health initiatives, validating the urgency and relevance of our project.