Winter 2021 Newsletter – NDPHS

Winter 2021 Newsletter

24 December, 2021

Dear Reader,

As another extraordinary year is approaching its end, we take a moment to reflect on our Partnership’s journey during the last months.

We are proud of what we have accomplished together with all of you and our main message today is that of gratitude.

Thank you from the NDPHS Secretariat’s team for being with us during the past year. What a challenge this year has been for everyone, juggling the professional obligations and the complications to everyday life that the pandemic has brought – yet you have been present, have contributed and have supported us along the way. Thank you!

We wish you to have a wonderful end-of-year break filled with love, warmth, peace and contemplation. If you are reading this message already from 2022 – welcome back and have a good start to the year.

NDPHS Secretariat’s team,
Silvija, Wiebke, Zane, Imants, Saara, Ülla-Karin

Click here to read the Newsletter

Other News
SAFE Helsinki meeting highlights seven areas for age-friendly working lives
Age should not decide who gets to stay in the workforce. Working conditions and opportunities should enable people to continue contributing throughout their careers. On 6–7 October 2026, partners in the Solutions for Age-Friendly Employer (SAFE) project gathered at Metropolia University of Applied Sciences in Helsinki to exchange knowledge on longer working lives and prepare for the project’s final phase.
15 October, 2026
From sensory gardens to VR: SchoolChanger partners meet in Estonia
SchoolChanger partners met in Estonia on 6–7 October 2026 to develop practical ways to involve young people in shaping more inclusive and supportive school environments. The programme included a visit to the sensory garden at Nissi Basic School, testing board games designed to encourage creativity and empathy, and experimenting, solve problems and developing prototypes at VIVITA in Tallinn.
14 October, 2026
Mental health is made in every ministry
In her World Mental Health Day statement, Ülla-Karin Nurm, Director of the NDPHS Secretariat, calls for mental health to be considered in every ministry and town hall, with people with lived experience involved from the start. She explores how cooperation across the Baltic Sea Region can turn tested approaches into practical policy recommendations.
10 October, 2026
Helsinki EPIC Workshop develops three ideas for transnational cooperation on crisis preparedness
At the third EPIC workshop in Helsinki, occupational safety and health experts developed three project ideas to strengthen workforce resilience and crisis preparedness. Building on earlier discussions in Tallinn, they explored opportunities for transnational cooperation.
25 September, 2026
Arts on Prescription project for being shortlisted for the European Social Services Awards 2026
Arts on Prescription in the Baltic Sea Region has been shortlisted in the Public Sector Collaboration in Social Services category. The nomination recognises the project’s strong cross-sectoral and transnational partnership and its work to advance arts-based approaches to mental health and well-being.
21 September, 2026
ArtWell NET Meets in Ukraine: Two-Way Learning Through Arts, Health and Resilience
The third international meeting of the Arts for Health and Well-being Network (ArtWell NET) brought partners from Ukraine, Sweden, Poland and Estonia together in Kolomyia, Ukraine. The meeting focused on how the Baltic Arts on Prescription model could be adapted to the Ukrainian context and what the wider Baltic Sea Region can learn from Ukraine’s experience of supporting mental health during wartime.
21 September, 2026
Internship Programme 2026/27
The NDPHS Secretariat in Stockholm is offering paid internships for 2026–2027. Gain hands-on experience in an international environment while contributing to public health, mental health and health-promotion activities.
21 September, 2026
Arts on Prescription: Estonia Explores the Positive Side Effects of Connection and Belonging
Arts on Prescription has now become part of the public discussion in Estonia. At the 2026 Opinion Festival in Paide, the Estonian Coalition for Mental Health and Well-being VATEK invited representatives from healthcare, public health, culture, local government and policymaking to explore what the approach could look like in the Estonian context.
10 September, 2026
All News >