The Arts, Health, and Society Division Newsletter – January 2026

Learn what is going on at EGS!
January 2026

 

Dear EGS Community,

We are pleased to welcome you to the 2026 Academic Year.
In our latest video message, filmed in Saas-Fee, we share our vision for the future of the Art, Health and Society Division. Our focus for the coming year is on deepening the theoretical foundations of our work—specifically our phenomenological orientation—while expanding our interdisciplinary reach. We also discuss new initiatives to enhance the student learning environment, including dedicated spaces for study and community exchange.
We invite you to watch the full welcome message here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfvLrymy3eU&feature=youtu.be

 

Photo: Katarina Marković

 

Registration for Summer Session 2026 opens February 1st!

Session 1
June 8th (Session 1 starts at 9am) to June 28th (Session 1 ends at 10pm):

Master Programs in Expressive Arts with Specializations in Therapy, Coaching and Consulting, & Social Change/Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding 

Doctoral Program in Expressive Arts

Session 2
July 8th (Session 2 starts at 9am) to July 28th (Session 2 ends at 10pm)

Master Programs in Expressive Arts with Specializations in Therapy, Coaching and Consulting, & Social Change/Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding

Doctoral Program in Expressive Arts

(Applications are open year-round on rolling-basis)

For a closer look at this year’s academic program, please click below:

Academic Program 2026

To learn more about our Masters and PhD Programs, please click below:

Masters Program

Doctoral Program

 

(Photo Source: Anna Fenech)

 

Save the Date! Malta Spring Course

Phenomenological Orientation as a Philosophical Entrance in Education, Research, and Social Change: An Elaboration Using the Concept of Embodiment

Hybrid from 23 – 27 April 2026, Valletta, University of Malta.

Phenomenology, as a philosophical approach, has increasingly been recognized for its potential to reshape how we understand and engage with education, research, and social change. Rooted in the works of thinkers like Edmund Husserl, Martin Heidegger, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and others, phenomenology emphasizes direct experience and subjective meaning nmaking as essential aspects of human life. By focusing on lived experience, phenomenology calls attention to the ways in which individuals engage with the world around them, transcending purely intellectual or abstract forms of knowledge. In this offering, we explore phenomenological orientation as a key philosophical entrance into educational theory, research methodology, and social transformation, with a particular focus on the concept of embodiment.
(Photo Source: Melinda Ashley Meyer)

Transform Trauma Oxford 2025

We are proud to announce EGS faculty member Professor Melinda Ashley Meyer’s participation in Transform Trauma Oxford 2025, the largest annual conference on trauma and mental health in Europe. Professor Meyer presented two lectures:

1) Intermodal Expressive Arts in Transition: EXIT – A Group Intervention for Traumatized Individuals and Communities. This workshop focused on the Expressive Arts in Transition (EXIT) component of Landscape, where inner landscapes of sensation, image and bodily response are externalized into outer landscapes through expressive arts.

2) Inner Outer Landscapes: Expressive Arts Approaches to Collective Resilience. This lecture focused on how Expressive Arts in Transition (EXIT) offers a practical foundation in this divided world and has proven to be a method that speaks to the human condition at large- applicable both to traumatized communities in crisis and to individuals.

To learn more about Professor Meyer, please visit our faculty page: https://ahs.egs.edu/biography/melinda-ashley-meyer/

(Photo Source: Chelsea Wilkinson)

Expressive Arts and Global Health Program in Malta (Fall Course)

October 22nd – 31st, 2026

REGISTRATION OPENS FEBRUARY 1st, 2026

The Expressive Arts and Global Health program provides didactic learning and practical skills training for artists, peacebuilders, humanitarian workers, health care providers, teachers, and change agents from all fields who work with individuals, groups, and communities experiencing traumatic stress and crisis.​

If you wish to learn more, you are welcome to join Shabrae Jackson, Chelsea Wilkinson, and Professor Melinda Meyer for a virtual information session on this course in February (date and time TBD). If you are interested in joining our email list, please email chelsea.wilkinson@egs.edu.

(Photo Source: José Miguel Calderón)
EGS has a new office!
We would like to inform you that our office has moved. Our Program Directors took a visit to the new office in Naters:
EGS European Graduate School
Kehrstrasse 12
CH-3904 Naters  
We are pleased to announce the launch of the new AHS EGS Podcast!

Stay tuned for a series of podcasts with EGS faculty reflecting on the 30th Anniversary of the Arts, Health and Society Division. Below is a short interview with the AHS Program Directors, Barbara Hielscher and José Miguel Calderón.

Listen to our podcast

 

(Photo source: Yasaman Pishvaei)

Introductory Online Experiential in Intermodal Expressive Arts

Are you interested in discovering Intermodal Expressive Arts? We Invite you to join our online Introductory Experiential, a space to explore the core components of Intermodal Expressive Arts through both theory and practice.

This session provides a meaningful introduction to our unique approach to teaching and facilitation. Whether you are curious about our Master’s PhD, or Professional Development programs – or simply wish to experience this way of learning – you are welcome. The next session is February 20th, 2026.

Learn more

 

(Photo Source: Katarina Marković)
Upcoming Information Sessions

Are you interested in learning about the AHS Masters Programs, PhD Program, and Professional Development (Continuing Education) opportunities? Join an upcoming information session led by Lucía de Urioste, Student Advisor, and José Miguel Calderón, PhD, Program Director:

  • 27 January 2026
  • 17 February 2026
  • 31 March 2026

Time: 16:00–17:30 CET (Central European Time)

If you want to join, please send us a message with your name and interest (administration@egs.edu).

We look forward to hearing from you!

 

** Announcements **

 

  • The Spring Symposium 2026 will take place virtually from April 8th – 10th, 2026.
  • Our next EGS Alumni Workshop Gatherings are scheduled as follows:
    • January 18,  2026 at 6 pm CET with Shabrae Jackson (workshop title TBD)
    • February 22, 2006 at 2:00 PM & 6:00 PM CET EAST and WEST Global Alumni Gatherings with Karla Beesemyer, Rilana Vorderwülbecke, and Co-Hosts from the Community     
    • To join us, simply send an email to alumni@egs.edu with the following information:
      • Your full name
      • Your country/region of residence
      • Your year of graduation
  • For PhD students – Please contact PhD Program director, José Miguel Calderon, if you would like to be included in monthly PhD meetings with your peers.
  • Expressive Arts Poetry Gatherings will be taking place on Zoom beginning in October, hosted by the International Network of Expressive Arts Training Centers and facilitated by Margo Fuchs Knill.

 

(Photo Source: Chelsea Wilkinson)

 

Join the EGS Alumni Community!

Our alumni are the torchbearers of our institution’s legacy, and it is our mission to create a platform that not only keeps you connected with peers but also offers opportunities for professional development, networking, and personal growth.

You can get involved by joining as a general member of our alumni community, or for a more active role, you can be a part of the EGS Alumni Committee! You could also help defer the cost of tuition for a current student by donating any amount in honor of a student you know or to the general tuition fund.

We can’t wait to welcome you and build a thriving EGS Alumni Community together. Reach out today and take the first step towards reconnecting with your alma mater and fellow graduates!

 

 

 

Poiesis Expressive Arts Institute, Seoul
(Photo Source: Mina Mo)

 

Partner Institutes
The field of Intermodal Expressive Arts (EXA) has grown considerably in the last thirty years and has developed an international reputation with professional representation in many countries. Interested in one of our Partner Institutes?
Community Art in Saas Fee
(Photo Source: Carole Walker)

 

Looking for professional development opportunities?
In addition to our formal degree programs held in the summers, there are professional development courses available each year – in Saas-Fee, Malta, the annual Spring Symposium, and online!