On June 5, the first working meeting of the participants of the international project CareBridge: Norwegian-Ukrainian cooperation in the training of psychologists and community mental health specialists was held, which will be implemented within the framework of the Nansen EDU program.

The project brings together the University of Oslo, Ushynsky University, Polesie National University, Kyiv School of Economics and Sumy State University. Its goal is to strengthen the training of specialists in the field of psychology, develop competencies in psychosocial support of communities, veterans, internally displaced persons and other groups affected by war.

The project includes the development and implementation of a certificate program for advanced training in community psychology, the integration of self-care and burnout prevention components into educational programs, the development of research capacity of teachers and postgraduate students, as well as the creation of Solidarity Hubs in Ukrainian partner universities.

The project manager from Ushynsky University and the direct author of the project concept is Academician Oleksiy Chebykin.

The first working meeting was also attended by Volodymyr Chernykh, coordinator of the Center for International Projects and Programs of Ushynsky University. Ushynsky University’s participation in this consortium was the result of consistent work on the development of international partnerships, project communication and institutional interaction, which is systematically provided by the Center for International Projects and Programs. It is this coordination support that creates the basis for the university’s involvement in important international initiatives aimed at responding to current social challenges.

During the meeting, the participants discussed the key areas of project implementation, the division of tasks between partners, organizational issues of the starting stage and further steps in implementing the planned activities.

The CareBridge project is of great importance for the development of psychological education, strengthening community support and forming a sustainable system of training specialists capable of working with the consequences of war, traumatic experiences and the needs of different categories of the population.