- 227 post-secondary institutions in every province and territory
part of the annual Bell Let's Talk campus campaign to promote
student mental health
- More than 500 events planned leading up to Bell Let's Talk Day
on January 29
MONTRÉAL, Jan. 16, 2020 /CNW
Telbec/ - Students at 227 Canadian universities and colleges
will be taking action to create positive change in mental health as
part of the 10th anniversary Bell Let's Talk Day on
January 29. More than 500 campus
mental health events are being planned around this year's Bell
Let's Talk campaign theme, Mental Health: Every Action Counts.
"This year's post-secondary mental health campaign will reach
more than 1.7 million students on campuses across the country,"
said Mary Deacon, Chair of Bell
Let's Talk. "As we celebrate our 10th annual Bell Let's
Talk Day, we congratulate students for their leadership in taking
action to build psychologically safe and healthy campus
environments."
Most students enrolled in Canadian post-secondary institutions
are age 24 or under, the demographic most susceptible to developing
mental health issues: 75% of people with a mental health disorder
were first diagnosed between the ages of 16 and 24.
The Bell Let's Talk post-secondary campaign grew out of a
student-athlete initiative at 11 Atlantic
Canada universities in 2016. Now reaching students at
universities and colleges in every province and territory, the
campaign has expanded to include varsity and collegiate athletic
games and a wide range of events from information kiosks to open
houses and conferences.
"A few years ago, my basketball coach asked the team if we would
be open to wearing Bell Let's Talk toques around campus to help end
the stigma around mental illness," said Sascha Kappos, a student-athlete at Dalhousie University. "We didn't know then the
positive impact this kind of simple action would have. Today,
students are more aware of support services, more open to having
discussions about mental health and I would say overall more
compassionate about the issue. I'm proud to have been one of the
first to wear the toque!"
"We're proud to raise the Bell Let's Talk flag on January 29 to highlight our ongoing commitment to
student mental health and well-being," said Dr. Wally Rude, Registrar and Dean of Enrolment
Services at Yukon College. "Last year, students participated
in Bell Let's Talk by sharing their strategies for self-care. This
year, students are co-leading all of our event planning."
"Throughout Québec, universities and colleges are working to
promote mental health and raise awareness in their communities,"
said Éric Doré, Director of Student Services at Polytechnique
Montréal and new President of the Regroupement des directions
universitaires des services aux étudiants du Québec. "The Bell
Let's Talk initiative offers us the opportunity to engage with
students, highlight the resources available on campus and foster a
stigma-free culture."
"Having struggled with depression throughout my youth and young
adult life, I know how important it is to speak openly and honestly
about mental health issues," said University
of British Columbia President, Santa
Ono. "I want students who are struggling to know there is
nothing to be ashamed of and that things can get better with
appropriate support and counseling. Thanks to programs like Bell
Let's Talk, we can now have an open and honest dialogue about
mental health."
"We're planning events hosted by different departments on
campus, including speakers with lived experience discussing the
challenges they've faced," said Jacqueline
Anderson, Associate Director of Wellness and Development at
Humber College. "The Bell Let's Talk
campaign has become a collaboration by faculty, administration and
students to create a mental health wellness circle of support,
dialogue and acceptance."
To see a complete list of participating universities and
colleges, please click here.
National post-secondary mental health standard
Bell
Let's Talk and The Rossy Foundation are funding the development of
a national standard for post-secondary student mental health to
establish best practices at Canadian campuses. Work on the standard
is being led by the Mental Health Commission of Canada.
"I'm proud to be working with university and college communities
to help develop a national standard to support student mental
health," said Jennifer Hamilton,
Executive Director of the Canadian Association of College and
University Student Services (CACUSS). "The standard will continue
the positive momentum in mental health that we're seeing on
campuses across the country."
Join the conversation on Bell Let's Talk Day!
On
January 29, Bell will donate
5 cents to Canadian mental health
programs for each of the following communications, at no extra cost
to participants beyond what they would normally pay their service
provider for online or phone access:
- Talk: Every mobile and every long distance call made by Bell
wireless and phone customers
- Text: Every text message sent by Bell wireless customers
- Twitter: Every tweet and retweet using #BellLetsTalk, featuring
the special Bell Let's Talk emoji, and every Bell Let's Talk Day
video view at Twitter.com/Bell_LetsTalk
- Facebook: Every Bell Let's Talk Day video view at
Facebook.com/BellLetsTalk and every use of the Bell Let's Talk
frame
- Instagram: Every Bell Let's Talk Day video view at
Instagram.com/Bell_LetsTalk
- Snapchat: Every use of the Bell Let's Talk filter and every
Bell Let's Talk Day video view
- YouTube: Every Bell Let's Talk Day video view at
YouTube.com/BellCanada
In 2019, Bell Let's Talk Day generated 145,442,699 messages
across all platforms, growing Bell's funding for mental health by
an additional $7,272,134.95. Since the first Bell Let's
Talk Day in 2011, Canadians and people around the world have sent a
total of more than 1 billion messages of support for mental health.
This brings Bell's total commitment to $100,695,763.75, including the company's original
$50 million anchor donation when Bell
Let's Talk launched in 2010.
Already the most-used Canadian hashtag of all time,
#BellLetsTalk was once again the top Twitter trend in Canada and worldwide in 2019. The Bell Let's
Talk Day video was retweeted more than any other tweet in
Canada.
About Bell Let's Talk
The Bell Let's Talk mental
health initiative is focused on 4 key action pillars: Anti-stigma,
Care and Access, Research and Workplace Leadership. Since its
launch in September 2010, Bell Let's
Talk has partnered with more than 1,000 organizations providing
mental health services in every region of Canada, including
hospitals, universities and other care and research organizations.
To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.
Media inquiries:
Katie Hatfield
902 487-6198
katie.hatfield@bellaliant.ca
@Bell_LetsTalk
@Bell_News
SOURCE Bell Canada