Panel

Reshaping priorities: Addressing mental health in an age of crisis

Thursday June 22, 12:00, Stavros Niarchos Hall GNO

In this session, panelists discuss the escalating mental health crisis amid global challenges. Young individuals grapple with heightened anxiety due to multiple crises such as environmental disasters and economic inflation, intensifying mental health issues. Our era demands a shift from treating individuals to considering the larger societal context affecting their mental health. The connection between mental health issues and violent behaviors is complex, with group dynamics often triggering radicalization more than psychopathology. Yet, 'lone wolf' attackers frequently have a history of mental illness. The panelists urged a transition from seeking immediate fixes to embracing a holistic approach to mental health, focusing on healing, compassion, and resilience. It involves not just treating mental health conditions but creating healthy environments. Research should adopt a more contextual viewpoint, promoting local, community-based interventions. Emphasizing the importance of local empowerment, they argue for a sustainable, cost-effective mental health infrastructure. Resilience, they propose, emerges from agency and empowerment. 

Curated by Chatham House

Moderated by Bronwen Maddox

Intervention by John Miller