TRANSFORMING CONFLICT: PLAYFIGHT & NVC

What we set out to do

Transforming Conflict: Playfight and NVC was an Erasmus+ KA153-YOU training course by Synchro Foundation (Netherlands), bringing together 32 youth workers from 8 countries for seven intensive days at Olde Vechte in Ommen, Netherlands. It addressed the needs youth workers across Europe who lack effective, embodied tools for navigating conflict and building genuine inclusion – particularly when working with young people from marginalized or vulnerable backgrounds.

The training combined two methodologies never previously integrated in Erasmus+ youth work: Nonviolent Communication (NVC), which builds empathy and clarity of expression through observation, feeling, need, and request; and Playfight, a somatic self-development practice that uses conscious physical engagement to open emotional expression, build respect for boundaries, and transform conflict through the body. Together, they offer youth workers a holistic, innovative approach to conflict transformation.

Axolotl’s founder Toni Lyubenova was the project writer and reporter, NVC trainer and programme co-designer, bringing her background as an advanced NVC practitioner, theatre artist, and non-formal educator. She co-created the training together with Elena Zanchetta (Playfight trainer, under the coordination of Cristina Pavel from Synchro Foundation.

What Axolotl delivered

• Co-designed the 7-day training programme integrating NVC theory with Playfight embodied practice
• Wrote the Erasmus+ KA153-YOU project application and reported the project afterwards
• Delivered NVC sessions: foundations, four-step model, NVC in mediation, NVC for personal, group, and societal conflict transformation
• Co-facilitated trust-building, group dynamics, and reflection sessions throughout the training
• Co-created a series of 8 videos on NVC and Playfight concepts
• Supported participants in designing facilitation approaches for local follow-up events and Playfight circles in their home communities
• Offered post-training coaching sessions supporting youth workers through local phase implementation

Photos by Mihail Mitevski

Approach and methodology

The training used experiential learning as its core framework – participants first engaged with NVC and Playfight as personal practice before transferring the methods to their youth work contexts. A three-layer reflection system (individual, small group, large group) ran throughout each day, supported by an empathy buddy system and daily reflection circles.

The combination of NVC and Playfight is genuinely novel – NVC addresses the verbal, cognitive, and emotional dimensions of conflict, while Playfight works through the body, offering a pre-verbal, somatic entry point for young people who struggle to express themselves through language. Together, they create a coherent, multi-dimensional toolkit for youth workers.

What participants learned

• Foundations of NVC – the four-step model: observation, feeling, need, request
• NVC in mediation – facilitating empathic dialogue between young people in conflict
• NVC across four levels – personal, interpersonal, group/organisational, and social change
• Introduction to Playfight – principles, community agreements, warm-up, and trust exercises
• Structured Playfight – movement, roleplay, and embodied emotional expression in pairs and groups
• Facilitating Playfight circles – a full day dedicated to learning how to lead Playfight sessions with young people
• Integration of NVC and Playfight – using NVC language and empathy within Playfight practice
• Co-creating educational videos – documentary-style content on NVC and Playfight for youth work audiences
• Local phase design – planning workshops and Playfight circles for home communities

• 32 youth workers trained across 8 countries in the combined NVC and Playfight methodology
• 8 local follow-up events delivered using NVC and Playfight in participants’ home communities
• Playfight circles established in multiple countries where the methodology did not previously exist
• An educational video series on NVC and Playfight co-created with participants and published online
• 8 videos produced and shared across the partner network
• An empathy buddy network established among participants for ongoing peer support post-training
• Youthpass certificates issued documenting the non-formal learning outcomes of all participants

© 2026 Axolotl  ·  Sofia, Bulgaria  ·  Working across Europe