WFMH News
Explore the latest updates and global events happening across the world as part of the WFMH Global Campaign 2023
Partnership with DECCA Records US
Message from WMHD 2023 Global Ambassadors
WFMH is delighted to present messages from our WMHD 2023 Global Ambassadors about the importance of mental health. We are grateful for our partnership with Decca Records US and its artists, who have come together to raise awareness, fight stigma, and highlight the role of music in mental health and wellness. You too can become an ambassador!
Please click here to read the WMHD 2023 Press Release of Decca Records US announcing the partnership with the World Federation for Mental Health.
UNESCO Club Vienna, Austria
75 Anniversary WFMH Bulletin
Human factors will become even more important determinants for the design of future longterm and commercial space facilities as larger and more diverse groups occupy off-earth habitats. The risk of an incompatible vehicle or habitat design has already been identified by NASA as recognized key risk to human health and performance in space.’Habitability’.
To commemorate the 75th Anniversary of WFMH digital artist Rachel Jag, in collaboration with UNESCO Club Vienna, explores the inner and outer worlds of space travel during World Space Week 4-10 October 2023. The exhibition includes Visions of the Future Poster Exhibit courtesy of jpl.nasa.gov galleries. The collaboration was inspired by the Analog Missions and Arts Initiative of Ghanim Alotaibi as well as the Moon Village Association’s Cultural Considerations Working Group Webinar on “Space Habitats And Habitability: Designing For Isolated And Confined Environments On Earth And In Space”.
Connect and Care
Zee Media Global Mindcare Conclave
On 8th October 2023, Zee Media Global Mindcare Conclave was held in collaboration with Rotary, CIMBS, and WFMH.
Rotary, CIMBS, and WFMH came together to train 100,000 individuals in Psychological First Aid over the next few years, equipping them to act as first responders. The day-long Conclave took place on Sunday, and the event was recorded.
An edited half-hour package from the Conclave will be broadcasted on various Zee TV channels, social media platforms, and news websites on 10th October 2023. The scheduled times and channels for the broadcast are as follows:
- 2:00 pm on Zee Salam
- 3:00 pm on Zee Delhi NCR Haryana (Zee DNH)
- 5:00 pm on Zee Hindustan
WMHD 2023
Message from WFMH Secretary-General, Prof. Gabriel Ivbijaro MBE, JP
This year’s World Mental Health Day ‘Mental health is a universal human right’ provides each and every one of us with an opportunity and the impetus to do more to promote our human rights because nobody is immune from mental distress and mental ill health.
Statement for WMHD
Nabila Makram AbdelShahid
“I am not this hair, I am not this skin, I am the soul that lives within” Rumi
“In a disordered mind, as in a disordered body, soundness of health is impossible” Cicero
Social media exposure, digitalization of many aspects of life, natural disasters and political crises, economic burden and unemployability, spread of infection and disease, collapse of social norms, all this is causing distress on our soul and mind. As a result, we see violence, addiction, suicide, and depression more common in our societies.
Therefore, we need to emphasize that the right to mental health is a subject of ever-increasing importance. In September 2017, the Human Rights Council Resolution recognized the importance of integrating mental health services into primary and general health care.
However, it is a joint responsibility to act against stigmatizing psychiatric patients and mental health service providers, to raise awareness on the importance of mental health, to understand the needs and demands of psychiatric patients and their caregivers, to direct funding and resources to support and drive a paradigm shift in the field of mental health.
Only if we join forces, cooperate and exchange knowledge and expertise, only if we complement each other and bridge gaps and face challenges, we can build an inclusive society that integrates psychiatric patients socially, that is able to acknowledge mental illness, where mentally ill receive appropriate treatment at the right time without fear or shame.
WMHD 2023
Message from Dévora Kestel, Director, Mental Health & Substance Use, World Health Organization
World Mental Health Day: Promoting and protecting the right to mental health
As we saw at the recent high-level meetings at the UN General Assembly in New York, mental health is higher on the global agenda than perhaps ever before. This is in part due to the tireless advocacy efforts across member states, civil society organisations, and people with lived experience.
WMHD 2023
Message from UN Secretary-General
WFMH is delighted that the United Nations Secretary-General His Excellency António Guterres has sent a message of congratulations to WFMH on its 75th anniversary year together with call to action for World Mental Health Day 2023 to uphold mental health as a universal human right and together, build a healthier world where everyone can thrive.
WMHD 2023
Message from WHO Director-General
WFMH is delighted that the World Health Organization Director-General His Excellency Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has sent a message of congratulations to WFMH on its 75th anniversary year and a call on all countries to invest in mental health because there is no health without mental health.
WMHD 2023
Message from WFMH President, Dr Nasser Loza
It gives me great pleasure as we come together to commemorate World Mental Health Day 2023, which is also a momentous occasion for the WFMH as we mark 75 years of global mental health advocacy. Since our inception in 1948, we have been committed to advancing mental health awareness, reducing stigma, and advocating for the rights of individuals living with mental health conditions. Today, it is a great honour to celebrate with you the Diamond Jubilee of the WFMH.
September 2023
WFMH Special Bulletin
As we mark our 75th Anniversary coinciding with World Mental Health Day 2023, the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) is proud to unveil a special bulletin!
Join us in commemorating this journey with our WFMH Global Campaign events, and information.
World Organization of Family Doctors
Message from WONCA
The World Federation for Mental Health is honoured to receive recognition from World Organization of Family Doctors, WONCA for our 75 years of mental health advocacy and global impact.
Chad Lawson - Decca Records, US
Official Music of WMHD 2023
In recognition of World Mental Health Day 2023, the World Federation for Mental Health is delighted to feature a composition by Chad Lawson from Decca Records US, a part of Universal Music Group – Stay as the official music of the WFMH Global Campaign 2023.
“Stay is about finding those times that are fleeting but buffer the soul and you think: I don’t want this moment to end. That place of stillness where you can heal your wounds and rejuvenate and then go back into the real world.