EFPA's Corner

News from the European Federation of Psychologists' Associations

A few highlights:

EFPA's seven points for the promotion of mental health in Europe have attracted a great deal of attention and will certainly not fail to have an impact. With the European Congress in Brighton and the European Semester of Psychology in Serbia and Italy, key topics were addressed which, in addition to mental health, also concerned sustainable development, for example. We were also recently able to highlight the contribution of psychology to overcoming the climate crisis at a symposium at the United Nations in Geneva. This also shows that, compared to previous years, we are now in closer contact with the European Union, the WHO and the United Nations. 

When we contribute our expertise as psychologists, we do so with evidence-based practice that is rooted in differentiated and reliable research. This became clear once again at the global webinar on the war in Ukraine, where colleagues from Ukraine, EFPA and the world associations presented psychology as evidence-based help in times of war and crisis.

The scientific evidence of psychological practice becomes also evident in our H-WORK EU Project that was completed this year. We will report in more detail on the completion of the H-WORK project on Multilevel Interventions to Promote Mental Health in SMEs and Public Workplaces (see: https://www.efpa.eu/h-work  and  https://h-work.eu/ ) on a coming edition of our news magazine. 

We are pleased and grateful for all the initiatives that could only be realized with the close cooperation of our volunteers and in close collaboration with the staff of our head office. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to express my sincere thanks to all of you, our volunteer colleagues and the team at the head office. I would also like to thank all colleagues from the member associations for their comprehensive and reliable support of our work. The look back shows that, despite all our concerns, we have many reasons to look to the future with confidence.

I wish you and your families and friends a Merry Christmas and a peaceful New Year! I am looking forward to seeing you again in 2024! All the best!

Yours

Christoph Steinebach - EFPA President

EFPA Council meeting, 23-24 November, 2023 Naples, Italy

The Italian Network of Psychologists Associations INPA, hosted during the European Semester of Psychology in the second half of 2023, the EFPA Council meeting in Naples (Italy). EFPA’s Full Members were invited to give important updates on activities going on in there country and a fruitful discussion took place on the work planning convention of the EFPA working groups for the mandate 2023-2025. From EFPA side updates were given on EFPA’s activity agenda, the European Congresses of Psychology, EuroPsy and the EU project H-Work. The next Council meeting will be hosted by the Order of Psychologists of Albania during the European Semester of Psychology in the first half of 2024, on 14 and 15 May 2024. 

Read more about the programme of the European Semester of Psychology in Naples in previous editions of the EFPA news magazine 

EFPA President Christoph Steinebach appointed as Ambassador of the United States of the World.

On November 24, 2023 the president of EFPA, Christoph Steinebach, was appointed as Ambassador of the United States of the World. The Council meeting served as the occasion for EFPA's nomination as a founding member of the United States of the World, in whose premises the council meeting took place.

The nomination deed was signed by the Secretary General of the United States of the World, Professor Michele Capasso, and the President of EFPA, Professor Christoph Steinebach, during a ceremony held at the headquarters in Naples. 

Learn more about the United States of the World on their website 

On December 6, 2023, The European Federation of Psychologists' Associations, in collaboration with the National Psychological Association of Ukraine, has organized an online event titled "The War in Europe: What Can Psychology and Psychological Communities Say and Do?" The event was organised to address the ongoing war and explore ways in which psychology and psychological organizations can be helpful in addressing challenges it brings in Ukraine, Europe, and around the globe. The event was opened by MEP Petras Auštrevičius (Lithuania), Prof. Dr. Christoph Steinebach (EFPA) and Dr. Valeriia Palii (NPA Ukraine) with contributions from Ukrainian psychologists, American Psychological Association APA, International Association of Applied Psychology IAAP, International Union of Psychological Science IUPsyS and EFPA.  

The video recording is available on EFPA website here

Album webinar War in Europe. December 6, 2023

[Click on image to view the album]

UN Geneva event On Nov 29, 2023

“Emotions – A missing link towards delivering the SDGs and long-term sustainability?”

On 29 November 2023, a cutting edge event was held at the UN Geneva Palais des Nations put on by the UN SDG Lab as part of their series “So What’s Next?”. The event was in association with the UN Geneva collaboration between the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA), the Federation of Swiss Psychologists (FSP), and the American Psychological Association (APA). 

The event was an in-depth discussion on the role of emotions and affective sciences in advancing the SDGs and long-term sustainability. As part of the ‘What’s Next Series’, the discussion engaged academics, researchers, policymakers, and practitioners across disciplines to explore how tapping into emotions can support a broader sustainable societal transition

Read more on EFPA newsroom here 

See you at ECP 2025 Paphos (Cyprus) July 1-4, 2025