Eco-Social Changes
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Eco-Social Changes is a creative, community-based project that brings people together across the divide in Cyprus through art, creativity, and environmental peacebuilding. Co-facilitated by an Art Therapist and a Creative Coach, the project creates inclusive spaces of free expression, dialogue, and reflection, fostering a shared vision of peaceful and sustainable coexistence with each other and with our environment.
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Discover the full Eco-Social Changes project →
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Eco-Social Changes
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Eco-Social Changes is a creative and community-based project that combines art, creativity, and environmental peacebuilding. The project brings people together across the divide in Cyprus, creating inclusive spaces of free and unhindered expression, with the aim of building a shared vision of peaceful and sustainable coexistence—both with one another and with our environment.
Between 22 April and 3 May 2023, the project brought together diverse communities from across Cyprus through a series of workshops and public events. These activities fostered dialogue, reflection, and connection, encouraging participants to explore ecological awareness, inner landscapes, and social coexistence through creative practice.
The workshops were co-facilitated by two practitioners Asli Bolayir, Art Therapist, working with creative processes to support expression, reflection, and emotional connection, and Alev Adil Creative Coach, guiding participants through creative exploration, embodiment, and personal insight.
Together, we designed and led workshops that welcomed children, adults, people with disabilities, and individuals interested in art, walking, meditation, and creative reflection. The sessions offered a safe and inclusive environment where participants could connect with themselves, each other, and the natural world.
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In addition to the workshops, the project hosted a public panel discussion featuring local experts and thought leaders, which was later broadcast on television. The panel contributed to raising awareness around environmental responsibility, social cohesion, and the role of creativity in peacebuilding.
The project was kindly funded by the U.S. Embassy, contributing directly to two priority areas of their grant program in Cyprus: bicommunal engagement and cooperation on climate and environmental issues
Feedback from both workshop participants and panel attendees rated the overall experience as excellent, highlighting a strong interest and clear need for further initiatives of this kind.
Building on this momentum, Eco-Social Changes aims to continue developing future projects that nurture dialogue, creativity, and ecological awareness, supporting a shared vision of peaceful and sustainable coexistence among the diverse communities of Cyprus.
Together, we collaborate on creative and community-based projects that use art, reflection, and embodied practices as pathways toward dialogue, ecological awareness, and peaceful coexistence.
Art Therapist
Asli Bolayir is an expressive art therapist whose work explores the intersection of creativity, emotional expression, and social connection. Through art-based processes, she creates safe and inclusive spaces that support reflection, dialogue, and healing—both at an individual and community level. Her practice is grounded in the belief that creative expression can foster awareness, resilience, and meaningful coexistence with others and with the environment.
Creative Coach
Alev Adil is a creative coach who supports individuals and groups in accessing their creative potential through embodied, reflective, and experiential practices. Her work focuses on creativity as a tool for personal insight, connection, and transformation, encouraging participants to engage with change, uncertainty, and possibility in an open and grounded way.