Voices in the Valley

Approximately 50 UBCO students came together on January 25th to learn what it means to be a mental health advocate. UBCO’s local Jack Chapter in collaboration with Campus Health VOICE and other partners (e.g., MHAAC, SHARP, RBC) hosted the event. Students heard from well-known mental health advocates Myles Mattila (local hockey player, spokesperson for MindRight) and Kate Wright (captain of the Canadian women’s field hockey team). Campus Health Specialist, Lauren Airth talked about suicide prevention, and there were inspiring workshops on anti-oppression, harm reduction and more. At the end of the day, students discussed how they want to address mental health on campus. Ideas included having mindfulness practices introduced before all exams, mandatory mental health informational sessions for all first year students, and the creation of a wellbeing space. Based on this year’s success, there are plans to make this an annual event.

For more information and videos about the event: