Mental health issues affect tens of millions of people around the world. Stress, chronic depression, and anxiety are major sources of widespread disability, compromised health, and reduced productivity.
Recognizing that many people encounter challenges to their mental health, the School of Public Health is developing solutions that build resilience and promote optimal wellness and mental health so that communities can thrive despite challenges. You can help expand expertise that is urgently needed to address these issues.
Expand educational programs, courses, and concentrations for students, and create graduate student fellowships in mindfulness and mental health to train the next generation of public health scientists and professionals on evidence-based methods and interventions.
Create community-engaged programs that address positive mental health, resilience, and mindfulness. These programs will serve as tools for supporting health- promoting behaviors (e.g., exercise, healthy eating, health screenings, smoking/alcohol reduction or cessation), with a special focus on the most vulnerable community subpopulations.
Establish an interdisciplinary research unit that draws on expertise and programs across the University with a focus on social, behavioral, and biological mechanisms for promoting mental health and resilience.
In collaboration with international partners (e.g., South Africa, Kenya, China), further develop existing research on resilience and thriving in historically vulnerable populations, including women and girls, sexual and gender minorities, and people living with chronic illness.