The project in summary

Open psychosocial support sessions through artistic activities and community-led activities through arts at the Irida Women’s Center (Thessaloniki, Greece) for migrant and refugee women.

The project in detail

The “Art Healing” project, which is part of The Protection Program developed since 2023 by Irida Women’s Center, aims to:

  • improve the mental health and socio-emotional well-being of migrant and refugee women through the therapeutic power of art and foster a strong community to act as a peer-to-peer network of support;
  • cultivate their skills and inherent talents to enhance their self-confidence and potentially help them obtain artistic skills and practical life skills useful for their integration into the host community;
  • build a safe, welcoming and supportive environment where they can express themselves freely, share their stories, and discuss their fears, concerns, and stressors openly.

Beneficiaries (2025)

  • 198 women (15-60+ages), including 178 migrant and refugee women;
  • 197 minors (first degree family member);
  • 45 people, including Community Members, municipal and civil society representatives, and 7 Partner organizations.

In 2025, Irida Women’s Center, also with the support of Alta Mane, has carried out the following activities:

  • organized 30 sessions of open psychosocial support group through artistic activities;
  • organized 12 sessions of open psychosocial support group via dancing;
  • organized 19 Community-led activities through arts, fully led by 20 migrant and refugee women;
  • organized 1 Closing Event (December 17, 2025) to promote knowledge exchange and reflect on the importance of art-based psychosocial practices and low-threshold, trauma-informed interventions, reaching 45 people, including Community Members, municipal and civil society representatives, and 7 Partner organizations;
  • developed, produced and shared, with 4 state/municipal and 23 civil society actors in the field, a Handbook for the replication and dissemination, to other and different vulnerable communities, of the methodology and practices, grounded on the principles of psychology, art-therapy and social work, implemented in its Protection Programme.

In 2026, building on the excellent outcomes achieved in 2025 and in response the challenges faced by the Community Members in terms of social isolation, aims to integrate museum visits and participatory cultural activities within the open psychosocial support group sessions through artistic and performing activities as a non-clinical form of psycho-emotional and social support intended to reinforce the vital connection between well-being, cultural engagement, and social inclusion, as well as to build bridges with the host community, reduce stigma/discrimination and facilitate a sense of belonging.