Moave
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Moave
psychology in movement
Story of Moave
"The story of MOAVE began in 2016, born from a desire to bring together two of my greatest passions: movement and psychology. As a newly graduated psychologist, I found myself fascinated by the ways the body communicates. Through expressive movement, subtle gestures, and the rhythms of the body, I discovered a language beyond words, a way to access emotions, memories, and inner truths. This curiosity sparked a deeper exploration of how movement and psyche are intricately intertwined.
Over the years, this journey led me to the study of Gestalt psychotherapy, somatic practices, and dance improvisation. Each path revealed new ways to understand the dialogue between body, mind, and environment, and to witness how the body can hold, release, and transform experiences. Movement became more than expression; it became a bridge to self-awareness, healing, and personal growth.
From this exploration, MOAVE emerged as a space where people could gently and courageously explore their inner landscapes. Here, the body speaks, nature inspires, and the self can reconnect with the rhythms of life.
Today, this remains the heart of MOAVE’s vision: to create a sanctuary for embodied exploration, where individuals can cultivate resilience, presence, and a sense of connection, to themselves, to others, and to the world around them."
Nayeli Špela, founder of Moave - psychology in movement
About the organisation
Moave is a non-governmental organisation established in 2016. Over the years, it has become a place where individuals are invited to explore their inner landscapes through the language of the body and the wisdom of nature.
This vision remains at the heart of MOAVE’s mission: to support people in reconnecting with themselves and the world around them, building better emotional resilience inside the embodiment presence.
Psychology
At Moave, we recognise that psychological processes cannot be separated from the body. From a somatic perspective, psychological functioning is not only understood cognitively but also experienced and integrated through embodied practice.
Our aim is to provide a therapeutic space in which individuals can deepen self-understanding, enhance nervous system resilience, and develop adaptive mechanisms of regulation. In doing so, we support the cultivation of experiential knowledge and practical skills that foster greater balance and well-being in daily life.
Movement
Our approach is rooted in the belief that the body is a door into the inner wisdom, holding the keys to unlocking deeper aspects of our psychological well-being. By integrating knowledge from different movement disciplines and psychological theories, we aim to provide a comprehensive exploration of the mind-body connection.
Community
We are creating and co-creating Erasmus+ international training courses for youth workers, trainers, coaches, educators, mental health professionals etc. to enhance the level of somatic approaches and psychological knowledge in the professional work and personal practice.
Nature
At MOAVE, we recognize that humans are intrinsically connected to the natural world, and that our well-being is deeply influenced by this relationship. By integrating principles of ecopsychology and ecosomatics, we invite participants to engage with nature as a companion and guide. Through mindful presence and sensory exploration, individuals can reconnect with the rhythms of the Earth, cultivate grounding and resilience, and experience a renewed sense of belonging and harmony within themselves and the wider environment.
Somatic Psychology
We understand that psychological experiences are inherently embodied. Emotions, trauma, and cognitive patterns are stored not only in the mind but also in the body, influencing posture, movement, and physiological responses. Through somatic psychology, we guide participants to cultivate mindful awareness of bodily sensations, tension patterns, and movement impulses. This allows for processing emotions at the somatic level, integrating conscious insight with felt experience, and promoting emotional regulation, resilience, and self-coherence.
Ecosomatics
Ecosomatics bridges somatic awareness with our relationship to the natural world. Participants are invited to explore movement in dialogue with environmental rhythms—trees, wind, water, and earth become active partners in the practice. By sensing how the body resonates with its surroundings, individuals learn to expand their somatic intelligence, enhance proprioception, and reconnect with their inherent interdependence within living systems. This practice fosters not only bodily integration but also a deepened ecological attunement.
Ecopsychology
Ecopsychology emphasizes that human mental health and ecological well-being are inseparable. Through guided encounters with nature, reflective practices, and somatic exercises outdoors, participants can address feelings of disconnection, cultivate mindfulness and presence, and develop a sense of stewardship and belonging. Psychologically, this approach supports stress reduction, enhances emotional resilience, and nurtures the capacity for empathy and relational depth—both toward others and toward the natural world.
Contact Improvisation
Contact improvisation is a core modality at MOAVE, allowing participants to explore movement in relational and physical dialogue. By engaging in shared weight, touch, and movement, individuals develop trust, attunement, and deep bodily awareness. This practice fosters presence, adaptability, and authentic relational connection, providing a dynamic and embodied way to experience psychological insights.
Methodology:
Ultimately, integration at MOAVE is about creating a living laboratory for self-discovery, an embodied space where body, mind, relationships, and environment interact dynamically. This dynamic interplay allows for deeper insight into how inner experiences shape actions, choices, and connections. It nurtures authentic self-expression, encourages creative experimentation, and support relational attunement. Through this way of engagement, participants can practice a profound sense of presence, resilience, and interconnectedness.
That benefits our mental health and well-being.
Moave team
Photo: Manca Kaplan Photography
Nayeli is a founder and a president of Moave - psychology in movement organisation.
She is a licensed psychologist that is nowadays working privately as a therapist with a Gestalt experiential psychotherapy approach. She has been a trainer in the field of non-formal education for more than 15 years. In the somatic and dance field, she is deeply inspired by contact improvisation, which has shaped her exploration of movement and its somatic approach beyond the dance studio. Having been actively engaged in the practice since 2017, she continues to investigate how this form expands her view on life.
Photography and poetry are places where her inner artist can come to life and express her vivid inner life.
"What I am currently interested in, my movement practice, is very much connected with the state of presence and enlargement of our sensitivities to be receptive. To the environment, to the stimulus, to the dimension of speed, direction, and momentum. To be attentive to what I am not yet attentive.
I love to work with attentive presence as a way of being - alert, restful, and available. The quality that offers responsiveness and rest at the same time. Somehow, I do not see these themes separated from the therapy room. They are very much present and main part of my work with clients. Nature is for me a very precious teacher.
It seems motionless yet it is in constant movement and continuation. So I wonder how, us humans, can become a part of this system, by deeply and sensibly listening to what is already there, what is already moving in its own way.
Sabina Vilhelm and Lana Karina Crnohorski
Are our caring and nutritious cooking team. They are also passionate dancers and explorers of embodiment practices. Something that can be reflected in their way of cooking: with presence, care and lots of creativity.
Živa is a project manager, facilitator and organiser in Moave organisation.
She is an anthropologist, manual therapist and researcher of somatic practices and contact improvisation.
Her field of activity focuses primarily on developing and maintaining sensitivity and awareness towards oneself, fellow human beings and the environment, finding organic, creative and non-violent ways for the coexistence of differences and their mutual enrichment, which enables continuous transformation and personal growth.
She uses work with the body, touch and awareness of space as the basic tools of her practices.
"I am drawn to the space where sensation guides action, where self-expression is shaped through somatic practices, movement improvisation, and the natural rhythms of our surroundings. Rooted in posthuman anthropology, we invite the body to become both storyteller and listener—attuning to breath, weight, and the unseen forces that shape us. I am especially curious about the balance between structure and surrender—how we can hold space for discovery without forcing an outcome. My work is about being present with what is, letting movement and narratives unfold, and learning through the body’s deep intelligence. Moving beyond control into sensation, allowing stories to surface organically—woven from gravity, stillness, and shared presence in an invitation to let go, to listen deeply, and to express from the raw truth of emergence."
Our companions:
Neža Pele:
Neža is an artist, working as a freelance contemporary dancer and choreographer. Her artistic work is mainly focused on improvisational practices that include both the body and the voice. She is also interested in the therapeutic effects of the voice and the connective power of collaborative vocal-movement improvisation. She facilitates Intuitive singing workshops to invite people on a playful journey of reconnecting with their own voices.
Ema Weixler:
Ema is a practitioner of the Ilan Lev Method—a bodywork-based somatic practice—and contact improvisation, with a deep grounding in Nonviolent Communication (NVC) and Vipassana meditation. With a background in cultural anthropology and a passion for non-formal learning, she spent years as a youth worker, trainer, and facilitator, creating spaces for exploration, connection, and self-discovery.
