Pepco has started cooperation with the UNAWEZA Foundation as part of the YOUNG MINDS project, which aims to draw attention to mental health problems among young people and introduce free preventive activities for young people, parents, and teachers.
According to the UNAWEZA Foundation's report "YOUNG MINDS. Openly about mental health," half of the surveyed students in Poland have extremely low self-esteem, one in three people who participated in the survey has no will to live, and over half sometimes feel useless. The report's findings are the starting point for the foundation to develop a comprehensive educational offer for children, teachers, and parents, aimed at improving the mental well-being of children and adolescents and normalizing seeking help.
Young people experience what we call the triad of mental crisis: they are convinced that they mean nothing, can do nothing, and are important to no one. Many situations are often perceived by them as dead ends. This is where several principles of so-called psychological first aid come to our aid. Each of us can learn them in order to help others break the chain of suffering that results from loneliness, low self-esteem, and lack of agency. Providing psychological first aid and emotional support is a key competence. Thanks to it, we can regain influence over a world where the slogan "mental crisis" is slowly becoming a painful reality for many of us. This is also one of the goals of the YOUNG MINDS project – Joanna Flis, psychologist and expert at the UNAWEZA Foundation.
The financial support provided by Pepco will be partly allocated to the remuneration of experts involved in preparing educational materials for children, parents, and teachers. These will include lesson plans, worksheets, a fairy tale about mental health, exercises, and presentations for children from all primary school grades, as well as grades 1-4 of secondary schools. Financial assistance from Pepco will also support the creation of guides, videos, and webinars for parents and teachers. In this way, appropriate education will be provided not only to the youngest but also to all groups that can have the greatest impact on improving the mental condition of children and adolescents.
We joined this important undertaking because we want to support real actions to improve the current situation of children and adolescents in mental crisis. In the entire initiative, it is extremely important to take care of the development of parenting and teaching competencies, as they are often the first people who can offer help – says Katarzyna Wilczewska, Corporate Communications Manager at Pepco.
The cooperation undertaken is another social initiative for the youngest, supported by Pepco. For several years, the company has been actively working to equalize educational and developmental opportunities for children and adolescents at risk of social exclusion, implementing a number of projects with organizations such as the Society of Friends of Children, the Saint Nicholas Foundation, the Atalaya Foundation, the Happy Kids Foundation, and the SOS Children's Villages Association. As part of its own social projects, it also engages network employees in action. In response to the growing problems with the mental state of the youngest, since 2021, the company has been supporting initiatives aimed at helping children in mental crisis, such as the helpline for children and adolescents 116 111. Support for the "Hour for Young Minds" program is another step the company is taking to improve the situation of the youngest in need. Educational materials will be available free of charge in schools that register for the program and on the website www.mlodeglowy.pl.
