Follow-up report on the workshop "Turning old into new - creative leisure education in the context of sustainability and psychosocial empowerment"

From July 21 to 31, 2025, a series of six workshops took place in one of the Johanniter residential groups in Pirmasens. As part of the Open Digitalization Alliance Palatinate II, young people were introduced to the theory and practice of circular design in cooperation with the Psychosocial Centre West Palatinate and Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e. V. in their residential group in Pirmasens.

In the context of the key topics of circular skills and strengthening the skilled workforce, the participants - young people with a migration background from different countries - were led into an interactive discussion on the topic of sustainability. Their ideas and thoughts on the concept of sustainability were collected and discussed together on an empathy map. In a further theoretical thematic block on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the everyday relevance was established; examples of well-known aid and rescue organizations (e.g. DRK, Johanniter) served as a bridge between global sustainability goals and local practice. Many young people contributed their own experiences and commitments in the field of sustainable development - a valuable change of perspective that shaped the shared learning space.

The practical work phase formed the focus of the series:

• Refurbishing old chairs by sanding them down with different grits,
• Co-designing individual motifs together with artists from the project team,
• designing the furniture into unique one-offs.

In this way, craftsmanship, aesthetic design and the principles of the circular economy were made directly tangible: creativity, care and collaboration turn used materials into something new and valuable.

In their reflections, the participants linked their work with possible circular business models: What role do material and labor costs play? How can the working time invested be assessed as a cost factor? Which skills are relevant for later professional orientation? This discussion sharpened their understanding of the economic dimensions of sustainability and at the same time strengthened their self-efficacy and team skills.

At the end, all the young people received the "Sustainable development and circular skills" certificate - in recognition of the content they had learned and the visible results. The designed chairs exemplify the aim of the project: to combine circular thinking and action with psychosocial empowerment and thus open up perspectives for education and professional development.

The aim of the workshop series was to create a low-threshold, yet professionally sound approach to sustainability, to teach the basics of circular skills in a practical way and to show ways of transferring them into the everyday lives of young people. The mix of brief theory, joint design and structured reflection is intended to motivate, promote community and make sustainability tangible.

We would like to thank the Psychosoziales Zentrum Westpfalz and Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e. V. for their cooperation and especially the young people for their committed collaboration.