As we mark World Suicide Prevention Day, we’re turning the spotlight on young voices making waves in mental health advocacy. Matt, Mad activist-academic currently undertaking their PhD at the University of Sydney within the Centre for Disability Research and Policy mapping the consumer, survivor, ex-patient and inmate, and Mad movement globally. Also, founder of the Australian Centre for Lived Experience (TACFLE), Matt works tirelessly to amplify the voices of those affected by mental health challenges.

In this Q&A, we chat with passionate mental health advocate Thomas,  who is at the forefront  of promoting mental well-being for young people in Kenya. Through the Better Me Kenya Network, Thomas is breaking down stigma, raising awareness of mental health solutions, and providing crucial support to young people in need. 

As we mark International Youth Day, we’re turning the spotlight on young voices making waves in mental health advocacy. In this Q&A, we chat with passionate advocate, Miriam, who is at the forefront of promoting mental well-being for teens in Kampala, Uganda.. Through the ENLIGHTEENS program, Miriam is helping to break down stigma, raising awareness of mental health solutions, and providing crucial support to teenagers and young mothers in need.

Hi everyone, I hope you are all well. I'm Professor Ahmed Hankir, a consultant psychiatrist in Canada and an honorary visiting professor at the School of Medicine in Cardiff University in the UK. I identify as a wounded healer. As I said, I'm a consultant psychiatrist, a mental health care provider, and also a mental health care receiver. I was a psychiatric patient. I am a person living with a mental health condition, a survivor, and that, of course, is nothing to be ashamed about.

I am Judy Karuki, a passionate mental health advocate from Kenya. My dedication to the mental health cause is rooted in my personal experiences with depression and anxiety, as well as a deep understanding of the harmful effects of stigma and discrimination on those seeking help.

 Hello, everyone. My name is Nanabanyin Anamuah Mensah, Founder and Executive Director of TrueCompanion in Ghana. TrueCompanion is here to improve access and inclusion in mental health interventions and to build collective community resilience.

We do this by promoting opportunities to support, connect and nurture youth in climate change and mental health by lobbying, mentoring, networking and developing capacities of youth to lead community-led, sustainable solutions.

Hi, my name is Abdullah Al Harun from Bangladesh. I am working with ADD International as the Project Manager of the community-based mental health project for children and young people in marginalised communities. ADD International is a participatory grant-maker for disability justice. Our vision is for a world in which ableism no longer exists and in which persons with disabilities can access their whole rights and experience justice.

Hi, I'm Pradeep. I witnessed several events that affected mental health on a large scale during my childhood. I grew up in the middle of Sri Lanka's three-decade-long civil war. It was a period marked by profound grief and trauma that left no corner of our nation untouched.

Hi, my name is Ahmad Nisar. I am an activist from Afghanistan, but I am currently based in Melbourne, Australia. My mental health has always been a priority for me. Yet, it is not in a dynamic state all the time, and requires genuine efforts to be stabilised.

I was first exposed to mental health in school because of multiple factors. As I kept moving on in life, I realised the importance of good mental health for all functionality, quality of life and contentment.

Hi, everyone. My name is Apish Tshetsha co-founder of Waves for Change from Cape town, South Africa.

In South Africa only 4% of South Africa's health budget is committed to mental health. We have a massive treatment gap. In Khayelitsha, a large community with more than one million people, there's only one psychiatric hospital with five mental health nurses