Running for Act for Change
Donation protected
Sponsor Jenai to run the Robin Hood Half Marathon on 28th September 2014 for Act for Change – Healing Minds: a student charity project that aims to improve access to mental healthcare around the world. Your donation will be match funded by Jenai's employer, doubling the amount you give.
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Up to a quarter of the world’s population will, at least once in their lives, be personally affected by mental illness. Mental illness can decrease both the length and quality of the lives of those affected. In Europe, about 50% of cases go untreated; they are left to be cured, to persist, or to worsen, without medical intervention. In India, this figure is 75-85%.
Act for Change – Healing Minds is a drama and film project that will provide a safe space where people in India and the UK can talk about mental illness. By empowering people to share their stories, this project aims to address stigma towards mental illness and improve access to suitable healthcare.
The project will initially involve a three week period working with community groups in slums and schools in Goa and Delhi this September. This interactive discussion will form the basis for a staged play, which will be performed for policymakers in Delhi in order to channel grassroots voices to people who are able to instigate change. Footage from these activities will be woven into a documentary film that will be shown throughout India and the UK through a longer-term engagement programme.
These interactive drama methods will then be introduced to the UK in a similar way, so that a safe space can be created for local communities in Britain to also engage with mental health discussions. By adopting a cross cultural perspective rooted in ongoing research, it is hoped that a deeper understanding about how social context alters stigma perceptions may emerge.
In partnership with:
The Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS)
The Centre for Community Dialogue and Change
Sangath
The Public Health Foundation of India
The George Institute for Global Health
Supported by:
St Edmund Hall, Oxford
Christ Church College, Oxford
Brasenose College, Oxford
Worcester College, Oxford
Hertford College, Oxford
OUDS
Thelma Holt
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Up to a quarter of the world’s population will, at least once in their lives, be personally affected by mental illness. Mental illness can decrease both the length and quality of the lives of those affected. In Europe, about 50% of cases go untreated; they are left to be cured, to persist, or to worsen, without medical intervention. In India, this figure is 75-85%.
Act for Change – Healing Minds is a drama and film project that will provide a safe space where people in India and the UK can talk about mental illness. By empowering people to share their stories, this project aims to address stigma towards mental illness and improve access to suitable healthcare.
The project will initially involve a three week period working with community groups in slums and schools in Goa and Delhi this September. This interactive discussion will form the basis for a staged play, which will be performed for policymakers in Delhi in order to channel grassroots voices to people who are able to instigate change. Footage from these activities will be woven into a documentary film that will be shown throughout India and the UK through a longer-term engagement programme.
These interactive drama methods will then be introduced to the UK in a similar way, so that a safe space can be created for local communities in Britain to also engage with mental health discussions. By adopting a cross cultural perspective rooted in ongoing research, it is hoped that a deeper understanding about how social context alters stigma perceptions may emerge.
In partnership with:
The Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS)
The Centre for Community Dialogue and Change
Sangath
The Public Health Foundation of India
The George Institute for Global Health
Supported by:
St Edmund Hall, Oxford
Christ Church College, Oxford
Brasenose College, Oxford
Worcester College, Oxford
Hertford College, Oxford
OUDS
Thelma Holt
Organizer
Roxana Willis
Organizer
