UnitedGMH at UNGA81

From commitments to action: United for Global Mental Health at UNGA81

At the 81st UN General Assembly (UNGA81) and New York Climate Week, we brought together some of our global team of advocates to spend the week advocating for what needs to happen now for global mental health. Here’s a roundup of what the team focused on:

 

Mental health needs sustainable financing

The world cannot deliver better mental health without sustainable financing. At UNGA81, we called for mental health to be treated as an essential part of health and development investment. As conversations on the Global Health Architecture continue, Shayni looks ahead to what this means for the 2027 UHC High-Level Meeting.

Young people are leaders

Young people are advocates, leaders, and agents of change. We’re building political support for youth mental health while strengthening the skills, connections, and influence of young advocates so they can shape the decisions that affect their lives. Aviwe shares why child and youth mental health needs urgent attention.

Mental health belongs in the climate conversation

At New York Climate Week, Aastha made the case that mental health must be part of climate action, and that the people most affected by the climate crisis need their wellbeing taken seriously.

Celebrating the movement for mental health

Sport and physical activity can play a much bigger role in improving mental health. At UNGA81, we helped bring together advocates from mental health and sport to build the political and public support needed to make movement a more accessible pathway to better mental health.

Making the declaration real, in law and in practice

One year on from the political declaration, commitments only matter if they change lives. David speaks about suicide prevention and why laws that criminalise suicide must change.

Sustaining action beyond UNGA81

We’re looking past this week towards the Global Health Architecture discussions, the 2027 Global Ministerial Mental Health Summit in Rwanda, and the 2027 UHC High-Level Meeting. Our goal is to keep mental health firmly on the global health agenda and make sure commitments turn into lasting action. Here’s the team reflecting on the week.