According to the ‘Challenges and Threats of Working at NGOs and in Informal Social Movements’ study conducted in 2020 by Marzena Cypryańska-Nezlek, PhD, ca. 38% individuals experience (often or very often) burnout at work, 39% of study subjects have a sense of helplessness when encountering the system, administration, social passivity, and only 16% have been trained to cope with work-related threats. We can see that activities we have been engaging in so far are insufficient and we wish to do more.
We will start from analysing the existing legal solutions and recommendation on mental health and best practices of professional and activist burnout prevention both globally and in Poland. Then together with activists, we will prepare change introduction scenarios, e.g., via petitions, social consultations, access to public information, monitoring and advocacy actions. Together we will also propose changes to the law and organisation functioning preventing activist burnout and mental health crises. We will also address the issue of conflicts emerging in teams.
Moreover, we will conduct research on Polish activists’ burnout and mental condition and will organise a series of training sessions on anti-violence initiatives, burnout, mental health crises, conflict management, and influencing the law. We will create a textbook for people active in NGOs and informal social movements on challenges and opportunities of social engagement and social activity based on collected materials and consultations with activists.