The SHM Foundation

As 2024 comes to a close, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to all our collaborators and partners for making this year truly remarkable. We’ll be closed from 23rd December to 3rd January for the holidays and look forward to an impactful 2025 together. Wishing you a joyful festive season! – The SHM Foundation & Ember Mental Health Team

🎉 Exciting news! The SHM Foundation’s Zvatinoda! digital health initiative, co-designed with young people in Zimbabwe, has been published in a leading health journal, JMIR Publications This innovative platform used anonymous, mobile-based chats to break barriers to health services for 18–24-year-olds. Guided by peer facilitators and expert “Aunties,” it offered a safe space for youth to discuss sensitive topics and improve their sexual and reproductive health knowledge. Key results? Improved health knowledge, better care-seeking behaviours, and a strong appreciation for the platform’s anonymity and group dynamics. Learn how this model bridges healthcare gaps and its potential for hybrid approaches combining online and in-person support: https://lnkd.in/githtZKm

📸 Step into a world of visual storytelling and explore the profound impact of community-based #mentalhealth initiatives with this stunning showcase of A stunning showcase of photos featuring Ember Partner Innovators from around the globe: https://lnkd.in/g_mRwbCH

🌍 Zumbido Pulse: Youth-Led Research Transforming Global Health Research In our latest issue, we explore how young participants from #Khuluma, Zumbido’s South African chapter, have become ethnographers within their own community. Through a unique academic partnership, these youth researchers offer first-hand insights into the #mentalhealth factors affecting adolescents living with HIV, placing community needs at the forefront of health service design. This approach, guided by “Research Conducted By and For the Community,” not only strengthens peer support but also opens doors for mentors to build educational and career skills. Explore the full report and hear from Khuluma’s Mentors about their journey and impact: https://lnkd.in/gX7SM_pP

🎉 Celebrating Global Mental Health Pioneers: Launch of the Bloomsbury Photo Exhibition! On #WorldMentalHealthDay, we hosted an inspiring launch event at Curzon, Bloomsbury for our photo exhibition, Shifting Perspectives: Visual Tales of ‘Unexpected’ Mental Health Champions. Co-founder and Director of Ember Mental Health, Anna Kydd, and Co-Founder and Co-Chair of The SHM Foundation, Professor Maurice Birotti, opened the event, highlighting the power of community-led #mentalhealth care. The event featured moving reflections from Ember Innovator teams, including KPSI and Project Phoenix (Light Up (Emotions Matter Foundation)), as well as award-winning photographer Elizabeth Dalziel, who shared their experiences of capturing these powerful moments remotely via FaceTime. It was an inspiring afternoon of reflection, connection, and celebration of compassion-driven innovation in mental health care. Join us at Brunswick Square Gardens, #London from October 10 to October 27, 2024, to experience these inspiring stories firsthand. The Schooner Foundation Bloomsbury Festival Read more about the launch event: https://lnkd.in/gAZbMJCH

Now Live: Visual Tales of 'Unexpected' Mental Health Champions Our photo exhibition celebrating culturally rooted approaches to #mentalhealth care from Ember Innovators across the globe is now open in #London. 🗓️ Dates: October 10 – October 27, 2024 📍 Location: Brunswick Square Gardens, London

🌍 Today is #WorldMentalHealthDay and at The SHM Foundation, we recognise that supporting each other’s #wellbeing isn’t just an ideal—it’s what we do every day. This year's theme, "Mental Health at Work", highlights the vital role of a healthy working environment. At SHM, our team culture is built on shared values that guide us: ✨ Care & Kindness: We prioritise looking after one another and the people we work with, dedicating time and resources to support the wellbeing of our team, partners, and participants. 🌐 Connection: Spanning over six countries, we know meaningful human connection doesn’t require being in the same room. We promote participatory leadership, collaboratively establishing our strategy and developing programmes in a close-knit, open, and cooperative environment. One of our favourite practices? Reading Days —a moment to pause, reflect, and recharge. And don’t forget our wellbeing mystery days —planned through a lottery system, offering surprise activities designed by the team to relax and bring joy. At SHM, wellbeing is at the heart of everything we do. #MentalHealthAtWork #WorkplaceWellbeing

Exciting news! 🎉 We’ve successfully wrapped up recruitment for our next group of Khuluma mentors, a mobile phone intervention offering psychosocial support to adolescents living with HIV in #SouthAfrica. With 40 participants across 4 groups, we’re all set to begin impactful conversations! The younger participants (12-17 years) are particularly enthusiastic, showing a strong interest in peer support and digital engagement. We’re excited to see the positive impact of these participatory, peer-led, and digital methods with our new group!

Exciting times ahead for SHM Foundation Africa!   Earlier this week, we officially held our first SHM Foundation Africa board meeting, diving into innovative ideas for the year ahead in arts, mental health, and beyond. It was an honour to collaborate with our brilliant board directors—Rose Waithaka, Amisa Rashid, Rosebella Iseme, and having our Co-Chair Professor Dame Henrietta Moore join them in person, in Nairobi. We’re thrilled to welcome them and look forward to their valuable insights as we embark on this inspiring journey together!

🎤 Happening today! Rini Sinha, Head of Strategy & Creative at SHM Foundation, and Desmond Tau, Head of Technology for SHM’s #Khuluma programme, are presenting at Sierra Leone Urban Research Centre’s conference ‘Bridging the Gap: Urban Health Transitions Towards Just and Inclusive Cities’. They’ll share insights from a pilot intervention in #SierraLeone that used mobile phones and digital technology to help People with Disabilities access essential health information. Don’t miss it—register here: https://lnkd.in/ghC_zswx