In a context where neoliberalism is sweeping through universities, imposing demands for high productivity in ever shorter timeframes, we propose a Relaxation and Experience of Peace Workshop, inspired by the slow scholarship movement. Slow scholarship emerges as a response to the accelerated and dehumanised production dynamics of academia, advocating for practises of self-care, daily resistance and the building of positive and supportive communities in the academic sphere (Mountz et al., 2015). This movement not only reaffirms the commitment to quality training, research and teaching, but also embodies a collective feminist ethic of care, challenging the fast pace and elitism of the neoliberal university (Caretta & Faria, 2020).

This two-hour workshop proposes a collective experience of self-care and well-being, using tools of self-knowledge (Ammann, 2018). We believe that the process of academic creation does not limit itself to the mind and intellectual reflection, but also includes body and heart. We will therefore start from the exercise of feeling, incorporating practises that favour mental clarity, emotional serenity and physical well-being.

The main objective is to offer practical tools that allow us to think with a clear mind, act with a calm heart and inhabit the body in a healthy way. With this initiative, we intend to contribute to the promotion of mental health and collective care in our academic community. In this sense, this workshop proposes experiences that strengthen individual self-care, which aim to free oneself from daily tensions, experience peace and, at the same time, encourage the building of support and solidarity networks in university life. It is an invitation to slow down, take care of oneself and others, and reaffirm one's commitment to a more humane, coherent and supportive academic community.

** Space for the workshop is limited to 20 people, so registration is compulsory > here
 

Bio notes

Djamila Andrade is a PhD student in the "Human Rights in Contemporary Societies" programme at the Centre for Social Studies at the University of Coimbra. Master's in Sociology at the same University (2023) where she presented her dissertation "Ecofeminism and Development in Mozambique. Ecofeminist critiques of development from the voices and practices of academic and peasant women in Maputo province". With an interdisciplinary background, she has a degree in Telecommunications Computer Engineering from the Instituto Superior de Transportes e Comunicações (ISUTC) in Maputo, Mozambique (2007), and has developed an international career in the field of mobile communications. Her current research interests include ecofeminisms, feminist political ecology and agroecology.

Cristiane Prudenciano de Souza is a PhD candidate in Contemporary Studies at the University of Coimbra, with a scholarship from the Science and Technology Foundation (2024/2028). She is a collaborating researcher for CEIS20 - University of Coimbra research groups “Educational Policies and Organisations and Educational Dynamics” and “Europeanism, Atlanticity and Globalisation”. Master's degree in Social Sciences from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo - PUC/SP (2018). Postgraduate in Teaching from FMU - Centro Universitário das Faculdades Metropolitanas Unidas (2002). BA in Business Administration from UNIMESP (1995). Lecturer at Senac/SP
 

Activity within the Ecology and Society Lab (ECOSOC-CES)