Crafting Pedagogies of Togetherness





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The residency took place in Paris over eight days between January (18-20) - "Crafting Pedagogies of Togetherness" - and April 2025 (3-6) - "Prototyping Pedagogies of Togetherness". The programme ran from January to June and combined face-to-face and online sessions. Participants engaged in group experiences exploring the applications of the social arts in education. By the end of the programme they were equipped with practical tools to use in their work with education, community, organisations and youth.

We carefully selected a group of participants from different backgrounds within our network. The selection was based on the diversity of perspectives and the potential for organisations, educators, artists and activists to grow through this programme.

Applications closed, Obrigada! Grazie! Merci! Thank you! Gracias! Danke! Kiitos! Takk! Köszönöm! Aitäh! to everyone who applied for the residency in Paris!
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Context Today we face a number of unprecedented global challenges. In order to respond to these, young adults, youth and children need access to learning opportunities that can support them to engage creatively and behave courageously with others. The Crafting Pedagogies of Togetherness Residency’s main idea is that awareness-based collective creativity starts with the art of being together (Gonçalves & Hayashi, 2023). That is, the quality of our presence, relationships and togetherness is the basis for learning and being creative as a social body. If feeling safe and belonging starts with being present with one another, how might we then cultivate and nurture safe, warm and inclusive spaces of togetherness for everyone?
The program
The Crafting Pedagogies of Togetherness Residency is a welcoming, playful and open co-creative space for testing awareness-based embodied practices, i.e. social arts-based methods that support attentiveness to the body and its experiences as a way of knowing, and embrace learning as a holistic and felt act. The Studio-based Residency investigates an emergent curriculum on togetherness which could be applied in the contexts of formal or informal education, in schools, universities or communities. The curriculum combines Awareness-based Design and Social Presencing Theater—and includes three pedagogical pillars: (I) Being Together, (II) the Aesthetics of Togetherness and (III) Relational Creativity.

Objective: To explore and develop methods for integrating social arts into educational and community contexts, promoting social cohesion and environmental awareness.

Methodology: Through workshops, discussions, visits to cultural spaces, and collaborative activities, participants will work on projects that combine artistic practices with pedagogical goals. The methodology combines Awareness-based Design, Embodied Awareness, Social Arts, Transformative Learning and Phenomenology.

Participants in Crafting Pedagogies of Togetherness are invited to engage as co-creators in a process that emphasises conscious collective creativity and relational exploration. Building on methodologies such as studio-based practices for future-making, participants are expected to contribute with openness, curiosity and a willingness to engage in embodied, experimental and reflective practices. The January gathering will serve as a foundational phase in which participants will collaboratively explore and prototype practices designed to foster togetherness, in preparation for their refinement in April, and future application after the end of the project. Throughout the residency, participants will explore themes such as attuning to relational dynamics, engaging in non-verbal and somatic sense-making, and co-creating creative responses to shared challenges. Situated within an ongoing exploration of collective and relational creativity, the programme asks participants to commit to designing actionable practices and prototypes that resonate in specific contexts, guided by principles of resonance, presence and inclusive co-creation.

Participant Profiles

Educators: Teachers and principals who inspired and supported inclusive learning through social arts.
Organizations: Institutions that promoted social and environmental awareness via social arts.
Artists: Creatives who addressed complex issues while nurturing the body, mind, and heart.
Change-Makers: Leaders who drove transformative social and environmental change.
Learners and Youth: Young people passionate about growth and creative solutions for global challenges.
Scientists: Professionals who collaborated through creative convergence across disciplines.

Participants embraced a collective approach to social art, collaborating to develop and implement creative solutions for global challenges and social cohesion.  
 


F.A.Q.

How and where can the results be applied afterwards?The outcomes of the Crafting Pedagogies of Togetherness residencies are inherently tied to the contexts and practices of the participants. Rather than providing pre-defined projects or settings for application, we aim for participants to converge, integrate and implement their prototyped ideas within their unique environments - be they educational, social, artistic, professional projects and/or training, or community engagement. Participants are encouraged to draw on their experiences and challenges to identify where these approaches can have the greatest impact. To support this, we can provide the infrastructure, mentoring and resources to help them develop, contextualise and refine their projects to ensure they are viable and appropriate to their specific aims and environment. The initiative is based on the principle that meaningful applications will emerge organically from participants' lived realities and professional landscapes.

 Why does it matter?The residency cultivates a set of practices and mindsets that extend beyond technical skills, engaging with the relational, emotional, and creative dimensions of professional work—dimensions that are both transversal and foundational across fields. These aspects are often overlooked in traditional professional training, yet they are critical to fostering deeper connections, meaningful collaboration, and innovative problem-solving. By integrating these elements, participants are empowered to deliver experiences that not only achieve goals efficiently but also transform the individuals and groups they work with, nurturing their capacity to thrive in profound and lasting ways. This matters because it shifts the focus from transactional interactions to transformative engagements, creating ripple effects of growth, trust, and creativity in diverse professional contexts.

What is the link to the external professional and educational world?The outcomes of the residency align with emerging priorities in education, professional development and community engagement, such as promoting inclusion, fostering creative collaboration and addressing systemic challenges through innovative approaches. Participants leave with skills and tools that enhance their ability to make meaningful contributions in their fields, whether by improving team dynamics, fostering deeper engagement in the classroom, or designing community programmes that promote social and environmental change.



What are the practical benefits for participants?
Participation in the residency offers several tangible and intangible benefits:

  • Deepened professional practice: Participants will develop advanced skills in presence, embodied awareness and relational creativity, equipping them to foster collaborative and inclusive environments in their professional contexts.

  • Practical strategies and tools: The programme provides practical strategies for integrating the social arts into education, training or community programmes. These strategies are adaptable to different contexts and promote cohesion, creativity and environmental awareness.

  • Transformational Frameworks: By engaging with the aesthetics of togetherness and collective creativity, participants will gain frameworks for approaching group dynamics, shared spaces and collaboration in innovative and impactful ways.         

  • Portfolio Development: Through collaborative group projects, participants will co-create a portfolio that demonstrates how artistic and pedagogical practices can intersect to create meaningful social or educational change. This portfolio can serve as a resource for future application in professional or community-based projects.

  • Networking: The residency facilitates connections with a global network of educators, artists and leaders, fostering opportunities for future collaboration and ongoing support.

  • Cultivating Reflective Practice: Participants will refine their ability to foster a culture of inquiry, prioritising reflective thinking and dialogue over prescriptive solutions - skills that are invaluable in dynamic professional environments.




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Organizing partners Hosting partnersFunding partners







Erasmus+ Project nr. 
2021-1-IT02-KA122-ADU-000017979 
is co-funded with the support of the European Commission.
The information and views set out in this website are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion 
of the European Commission. Neither the European Union institutions nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.
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Empowering Educators:
Improving Lifelong Learning in Europe through Transformative Pedagogies

This Erasmus+ co-funded initiative introduces an innovative pedagogical framework based on Awareness-Based Design (ABD) and embodied learning. By centring embodiment and relational practices, it addresses complex socio-educational challenges while fostering critical self-reflection, emotional intelligence, and inclusive teaching strategies.

Integrating key principles of Transformative Learning (TL)—such as inner transformation, delayed meaning-making, and co-creative literacies—the project reimagines adult education as a dynamic blend of material, emotional, and systemic awareness.

Background

Responding to a growing demand for transformative approaches, this project builds on over five years of applied research in Transformative Learning by Ricardo Dutra Goncalves and Arawana Hayashi, grounded in the vision of Studio Atelirista. 

While supported by Erasmus+ and enriched by transnational collaboration—including with the hosting organisation Association Méditation dans l’Enseignement (AMLE, France)—the project’s core direction is led by Studio Atelirista’s mission to bring people together to co-create social and environmental art that respond to pressing global issues

Methodology

The project combines Social Presencing Theatre (SPT) with design-led tools and collaborative co-creation, informed by the research of Ricardo Dutra Goncalves. These methods make intangible dynamics (e.g. implicit bias, power asymmetries) visible, helping trainers critically engage with systemic barriers in adult education.

Through job shadowing, training placements, and co-designed courses with AMLE, participants explored an innovative framework and prototype interventions that challenge entrenched narratives through embodied participatory inquiry.

Objectives

  • Build trainer capacity in Transformative Learning (TL):
    Experiential workshops on Pedagogies of Togetherness and ABD equiped trainers to lead learner-centred, context-sensitive programmes.
  • Refine and validate the Transformative Learning Framework:
    The TL model was improved iteratively through participant feedback and academic collaboration, integrating best practices from across Europe.
  • Promote intersectional participation in Erasmus+ adult learning:
    Intersectionality was, and still be embedded in programme design, stakeholder training, and policy dialogue to ensure inclusive access and representation.


This project empowered educators to build learning environments that foster systemic belonging and collective agency, prioritising awareness over static knowledge transfer—core values aligned with the European Education Area’s goals of inclusion and innovation.






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Partnership Overview

This initiative is a collaboration between Studio Atelirista (Italy) and Erasmus+, which provided co-funding. The Association Méditation dans l’Enseignement (AMLE, France) served as the host organisation, contributing expertise in mindfulness-based methodologies and social-emotional learning. Together, the partnership created a strong platform for sharing evidence-based Transformative Learning (TL) strategies rooted in belonging, participatory design, and systemic change.

Follow-up projects will be submitted in the second round of Erasmus+ in October.








Paris team
Candice E. Marro -Paris host
is a qualified psychotherapist, craniosacral therapist, certified mindfulness teacher, and author. She has impacted contemplative education for children and teenagers aged 5-18 by co-developing the P.E.A.C.E.® program, a 10-week mindfulness intervention to enhance prosocial skills. Additionally, she promotes regenerative education in higher education, integrating mindfulness and eco-therapy. Marro is the founder of “Méditation Laïque pour l'Éducation” and directs Mindful Education France and Quebec.
https://meditation-enseignement.com/

Arawana Hayashi
Arawana’s work as a choreographer, performer, and educator is deeply sourced in awareness-based collaborative creative process. She is a co-founder and senior faculty of the Presencing Institute where she heads the creation of Social Presencing Theater. She brings her background in performance artmaking and meditation to this embodied presence practice that cultivates healthy and compassionate relationships in organizations, schools, and communities.
Since 1980 Arawana has taught meditation and creative process. She is the author of Social Presencing Theater: The Art of Making a True Move published by PI Press.
https://arawanahayashi.com/ - https://www.u-school.org/spt

Ricardo Dutra 
is a social designer, researcher and educator working and collaborating in diverse global contexts. He holds a MFA in Transdisciplinary Design from Parsons School of Design, New York, and a PhD in Design for Transformative Education from Monash University, Melbourne. Ricardo is currently a Lecturer at the Department of Art & Media, Aalto University, Finland.
https://www.ricardo-dutra.com

Agathe Peltereau-Villeneuve 
facilitates collective change work through social and embodied arts in the corporate, community and educational sectors. She is a Social Presencing teacher and practitioner, and a Visual Presencing practitioner. Trained in Theory U, she offers creative sensing experiences and journeys that open spaces of resonance, nurture deep dialogues and create conditions for change in groups and systems.

Anne-Sophie Dubanton
enables positive change through connecting networks and holding transformative spaces and programs. She builds on her experience of being an entrepreneur, a mindfulness teacher and Theory U facilitator and trainer.

Marina Seghetti
works at the intersection of capacity building, social art, and outreach. She designs creative spaces that foster collaboration and positive change. As a consultant, trainer, and coach, she guides individuals and organizations in realizing their transformative potential.
https://paramitalab.org/



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activities







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Preparatory Calls: Laying the Groundwork for Collective Transformation
The preparatory phase sets the foundation for shared vision and relational trust. These virtual sessions establish a common language and framework, aligning participants across Europe around the principles of Awareness-Based Design (ABD) and transformative pedagogy. Through guided dialogues, collaborative mapping, and embodied exercises, educators explore their role as co-creators of inclusive learning ecosystems.
Mobilities -blended activities
The blended mobilities phase combined hands-on training, job shadowing, and collaborative courses to put theory into practice. Hosted by partner organisation AMLE (France), these activities immersed educators in real-world applications of Awareness-Based Design (ABD) and relational pedagogies.

Dissemination & follow-up
Dissemination and follow-up are key to ensuring the project's long-term impact and preventing it from becoming a one-off initiative. Empowering Educators: Improving Lifelong Learning in Europe through Transformative Pedagogies extends its influence beyond the project itself—reaching schools, organisations, communities, and research contexts. By promoting a “language of togetherness” as a transformative pedagogy, the project inspires new ways of learning, collaborating, and fostering social cohesion.

Participants developed prototype interventions tailored to their specific audiences, ensuring adaptability across diverse educational and social settings.


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@2020/25
ParamitaLab a.p.s.
CF:94294030484