AI has long been part of our everyday lives. We use ChatGPT, see AI-generated images, and encounter algorithms on social media – often daily. But do we also know how these systems work, what data they use, and what they do to our wellbeing? Connected Minds – Youth Voices on AI and Mental Health brings together young people from Romania and Austria to ask exactly these questions and develop answers together.
Don't just use AI. Understand and shape AI.
In Austria, young people usually have early access to digital tools, but struggle with performance pressure, perfectionism, a culture of comparison, and invisible mental burdens that come with more screen time and social media use. In Romania, many young people – care leavers, for example, and young people in disadvantaged circumstances – face structural insecurity and little access to psychological support. Yet they are just as deeply embedded in AI-shaped digital environments. A survey we conducted with 43 young people from both countries shows the gap between use and competence: 95% know generative AI, 75% actively use it, but only 17% feel confident checking AI information for trustworthiness. Almost half describe the impact on their own wellbeing as mixed or unclear; 30% regularly turn to AI as emotional support when stressed. This is exactly where Connected Minds comes in: the project combines critical AI literacy with mental health, digital self-determination, and mutual support – and creates a transnational space in which these different but connected realities become visible.
Connected Minds is aimed at 20 young people between 18 and 25 from Austria and Romania – especially at young adults who have so far had less access to educational offerings or opportunities to shape the digital world. In a 5-day youth camp in the surroundings of Vienna, the young people meet to learn about the topics mentioned together with the three partner organisations involved, Stabil im Kopf, The Social Incubator, and Womentor, to exchange ideas, and then to develop their own awareness campaigns in international teams. This allows them to become multipliers and bring the topics of AI literacy and mental health closer to other young people.
How the project unfolds
After two online info sessions, 20 youth leaders are selected – ten from Austria and ten from Romania. In February 2027, they meet for the five-day Youth Co-Creation Lab in Austria. The focus there is on bias and manipulation, data protection, algorithms, digital self-images, and the question of when AI supports – and when it creates additional pressure.
The timeline
- September 2026: Project start and preparation by the partner organisations
- October to November 2026: Info sessions and subsequent application phase – selection of the 20 youth leaders
- February 2027: Five-day international Co-Creation Lab in Austria
- February to June 2027: Mentoring, peer learning, and implementation of the campaigns
- June 2027: Presentation of the results and publication
Become part of Connected Minds
You don't need to be an AI expert. What matters is your perspective, your questions, and your desire to develop something together with others. You will learn to understand digital systems more critically, strengthen your own strategies for digital wellbeing, and become a voice yourself for a more conscious approach to AI. The results are intended to reach more than 5,000 young people and to be available to other organisations in Europe as well.
Would you like to be part of it? Then add your name to the list of interested people now. There you will find out when the info sessions take place and when and how you can apply for the project.
For more information, also take a look at our project page.
Connected Minds is co-funded by the European Union through Erasmus+ as a “Small-scale Project for Youth (KA210-YOU)”.