The 5th Youth Goal of the 11 European Youth Goals is dedicated to mental health and wellbeing. With the Youth Goals included in the EU Youth Strategy, mental health has become an important aspect of youth work. For European youth workers the ability to work appropriately with young people affected by trauma became even more relevant with many young refugees seeking refuge from war or political prosecution. In the wider European context, the ongoing war in Ukraine, recent escalations of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and political repressions in Georgia and Azerbaijan are prominent triggers for conflict-inflicted traumata. Moreover, traumata are also triggered by factors such as abuse, harassment, (cyber) bullying which are common occurrences for many young people, in particular from vulnerable groups. Likewise, mental well-being is affected throughout Europe by social polarisation, the consequences of climate change and a growing disconnect from nature. Thus, trauma and mental well-being work has also become of increasing practical relevance for many youth workers. Against this background, the project partners want to develop their competence and well-being further to contribute significantly to quality improvement in youth work, specifically with trauma-affected young people. To reach this aim, the project will pursue three distinct objectives: To strengthen the educational competences of youth and peer educators in trauma-responsive youth work To extend hands-on guidelines on trauma-responsive non-formal education for young people To foster cooperation between the participants and the project partners trauma, responsive youth work for personal development of young people With these objectives, the project aims to address needs that the project partners have identified through their work with trauma-affected youth and within the first training course on “Promoting Well-being Competence in Youth Work” in September 2024. This follow-up application focuses especially on the effects of the increasing disconnect with nature on the mental well-being of young people. The needs are: On the level of youth workers, specifically youth and peer educators Better understanding of the effects of trauma on young people and their personal daily life challenges Knowledge of educational practices for the work with trauma-affected young people Practical experience in using trauma responsive techniques based on Mindfulness and Embodiment in the work with young people Expertise to make better use of the healing powers of nature and to reconnect with the environment Peer-to-peer exchange with other practitioners working by means of non-formal education with trauma-affected young people On the level of organisations working in the youth field A diverse pool of qualified educators that can work in a trauma sensitive manner with trauma-affected young people Educational resources that ease and simplify on-boarding processes of new educational staff or external educators by framing trauma responsive education for young people Learning opportunities for youth workers for professional development on mental health aspects of youth work, amongst others trauma To address these needs and achieve the three objectives, the project is designed based on the following assumptions: Quality improvement in youth work depends on the professional qualification of youth workers. To increase active participation of trauma-affected youth in social, political, cultural and economic life, youth educators need to better understand how to work in a trauma responsive manner. For quality improvement to become embedded into organisational practices three conditions have to come together: qualified professionals; available educational resources providing needs-based and applicable guidelines; and a supportive network allowing for continuous exchange of practices with like-minded organisations. Accordingly, the project is composed of a tailor-made blended educational programme composed of four interlinked educational activities (2 preparatory e-course, 2 PDAs) that provide space for: 1) competence development of youth and peer educators through peer-to-peer knowledge exchange (1st PDA) and practical learning in form of a training the educator course (2nd PDA) 2) the development of educational resources by the participants to ensure these materials are applicable and needs-based for both the participants and the partner organisations; and 3) planning of follow-up activities on trauma responsive youth work on local and international levels.