So what is the Global Alliance doing on the international stage?

The Global Alliance’s unique action-oriented focus at the intersection of behavioral health, social justice, and human rights is critical to our ongoing work championing mental health and well-being. But how does that play out on the international stage? As the world recognizes Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day, a day that mobilizes stakeholders to call for strong, equitable health systems that leave no one behind, we wanted to share what we have been working on in 2021.

Supporting Mental Health for All: The Importance of Community Engagement

What does supporting mental health for all really mean? A difficult and complex question that I have reflected on, and while there is not one simple answer, at its core it involves a commitment to person-centeredness. Our World Mental Health Day discussion focused on the development, implementation, evaluation, and implications of How Right Now – a national, research-based communications campaign aimed to promote and strengthen the emotional well-being and resiliency of high-risk populations adversely affected by COVID-19 - related stress, grief, and loss.

Global Alliance at the UN High Level Meeting for HIV/AIDS and Side Events

The United Nations High Level Meeting (UNHLM) for HIV/AIDS and side events were held virtually from June 8-11 2021.  During the HLM, world leaders in the General Assembly adopted the Political Declaration which pledged urgent, transformative action to stop the global AIDS epidemic.  

Integrating Mental Health is Critical to Overcoming Inequities and Ending AIDS

Now is the Time: Ending Stigma Around Mental Illness and Improving Mental Health 

On May 13th, 2021, I had the remarkable opportunity to attend the Stakeholder Listening Session hosted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS) Office of Global Affairs. The Listening Session was developed to help provide the U.S. delegation to the World Health Assembly with knowledge, ideas, and feedback from national organizations invested in global health matters, incorporating perspectives from public health and advocacy groups; state, local, and Tribal groups; private industry; minority health organizations; and academic and scientific organizations.

Prior to the 74th World Health Assembly (held from May 24-June 1, 2021) the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS) Office of Global Affairs hosted a Listening Session on May 13th, 2021, to help provide the U.S. delegation to the World Health Assembly with knowledge, ideas, and feedback from national organizations invested in global health matters. The Global Alliance was represented at the Listening Session by Evelyn Tomaszewski, Gita Jaffe, and Surasya Guduru. In recognition of the urgent need to prioritize individual and community mental health, the Global Alliance was given the opportunity to provide statements on a variety of concerns we have historically advocated for.

Starting the second week of July 2020, High-level Political Forum (HLPF) (the United Nations central platform for follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)) met virtually. The theme was Building back better after COVID-19 and acting where we will have the greatest impact on the SDGs. Focusing on  “Accelerated action and transformative pathways: realizing the decade of action and delivery for sustainable development” the HLPF did not adopt a Ministerial Declaration, however a summary from the president of ECOSOC to capture key messages of the discussions can be found here.

On July 9, 2020, The United Nations Institute for training and research (UNITAR) convened a panel entitled Teaching, Learning, and Integrating the SDGs at Universities and Beyond; using SDG 4 as the springboard for discussion.  As a social worker and educator, I was pleased to hear about both the efforts within the academy and the commitment to honoring and including live-long learning (LLL) in the conversation.

Developing transformational partnerships to catalyze SDGs implementation panelists shared practical examples of how collaboration is necessary to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs, both between the SDGs and among stakeholders.

During the UN HLM session Accelerating action through digital technologies: Strengthening digital skills and capacities for human wellbeing, the discussion focused on the role of digital skills for development and the need to close the digital divide, particularly as the correlation between risks to COVID-19 intersecting with digital and social inequities were raised. The session highlighted examples from around the world with relation to access and barriers to reliable internet, in conjunction with the skills and platforms necessary to work remotely and attend virtual school. The central point was that digital skills (on desktops, laptops, and mobile devices) are required to accelerate the achievement of all SDGs. If used properly, such skills will be used as enablers, which means that without skills people will be left further behind. COVID-19 has brought to the surface the huge connectivity challenge, with over 90% of the world’s population living in an area that has service coverage, yet only 54% are using the internet, with less developed countries having significantly less usage (ITU, 2020)

During the Food Systems and Nutrition Patterns: Biodiversity, Resilience, and Food Security UN HLM session, panelists shared strategies for improving how our global food systems operate. A central theme of this session included sustainable food production and distribution. That is, critically evaluating the methods for how food is grown, harvested, raised, fished, etc., and the effects these methods have on the environment.

Session 6, Energy decarbonization and universal access: Participatory Science and Stakeholder Capacity Building in Sustainable Energy Development, was closely tied to SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. Concepts relative to sustainability and energy decarbonization may not immediately come to mind when thinking of behavioral health or social justice, however, featured speakers passionately conveyed that having access to sustainable, clean energy sources is tied to health and wellness, as well as socioeconomic development. Two organizations were featured in this session.