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 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.

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.

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Source: Bell Media