Advocacy Guide: From International Days to Awareness Weeks - Advocating for Mental Health when the World is Watching
International and national mental health awareness days and weeks play a crucial role in raising the profile of global issues and garnering support for meaningful action. Annually, civil society organisations (CSOs), individual advocates, and governments use these occasions to spotlight crucial challenges and encourage significant stakeholders to drive policy and practice change. These high-visibility moments are pivotal for national campaigners, who look to leverage such opportunities to build momentum around critical policy, legislative and/or practice issues and develop grassroots advocacy plans and campaigns to raise awareness, foster commitment, and address local needs. Advocates are focused on addressing specific issues where attention and action are most impactful, which very often differs significantly between countries and regions.
There is typically a series of important advocacy opportunities that emerge to help expand the reach of initiatives around awareness moments. This advocacy guide, as informed and enriched by the Global Mental Health Action Network members, aims to highlight these opportunities and provide recommendations to help mental health champions harness the momentum of such moments. It includes practical strategies for planning, executing, and assessing advocacy campaigns and outlines key considerations to ensure alignment with best practices from the mental health sector for maximum impact.
This resource has primarily been created for grassroots campaigners, CSOs, mental health champions in government offices, multilateral and international non-governmental organisations (INGOs), and other global agencies, but it can be adapted for use by anyone interested in advancing the mental health agenda.
Key Takeaways
Begin planning 6-12 months in advance, meaningfully co-leading with persons with lived experience of mental health conditions, including young people, at the onset of the process.
Ensure that your campaign plans and activities for awareness days sit within a broader advocacy strategy and that you have defined “what success looks like”.
Remember that your advocacy efforts are more impactful when you build coalitions and partnerships with other key players in the space.
Consider new, and creative ways to present data or create new evidence for an awareness day to capture the attention of the public, media, policymakers, and other decision-makers.
Don’t forget to utilise the traditional media (press, TV and radio), digital, and social media platforms, and engage influencers to reach new and diverse audiences.
Learn your topic well and trust your expertise; it makes you an important and trusted stakeholder for policymakers.
Planning and Impact Evaluation
To maximise the effectiveness of mental health advocacy, strategic planning and a set of thoughtful, clear, and measurable objectives are needed. A well-considered plan that evolves over several months leading up to a global awareness day is more likely to be successful, especially for awareness days that cover multiple, often intersecting, issues. Campaigns and initiatives are most successful when they are part of a broader advocacy strategy and positioned to accelerate action towards a longer-term advocacy goal.
The following are key considerations:
Start Early - Begin your planning 6-12 months before the awareness day, starting with the end goal and working backwards to identify how your activities can help you progress towards your broader advocacy objectives. Starting early allows you to align your work and campaigns with that of other key players in the space, and build meaningful partnerships which can achieve greater impact.
PESTLE Analysis - Consider the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental (PESTLE) factors in your environment and how these external dynamics may support or hinder your advocacy efforts. Completing a PESTLE analysis early in the planning process allows you to contextualise your work within your specific, local setting and determine what is achievable, and what is required for meaningful change to occur. Through this process, you will gain a better understanding of the key agents of change and your audience. Learn more about PESTLE analysis.
Set SMART Goals - Articulate your objectives from the outset. Set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) objectives within your advocacy plans. This ensures that activities are driven with purpose and can be articulated both internally to colleagues and to external collaborators with ease. SMART objectives can help to ensure your work remains focused and relevant and that your ambitions are realistic. This is especially important to avoid overstretching capacity and resources. It can be helpful to pull together a small project group that works together on agreeing the strategy, SMART goals and impact evaluation measures, which continues to meet during the build-up to the day and does so afterwards to evaluate what has worked well and what might need to be adjusted for future such projects. Learn more about SMART objectives.
Impact Evaluation - Make sure to regularly assess the impact of your campaign and activities. Monitor key performance indicators as outlined in your SMART goals, and gather evidence and examples of impact as you go, not just at the end. This process will allow you to make evidence-based decisions about your strategies, allowing you to either continue with existing plans or adjust them as needed. Data collection and evaluation are also valuable for existing and potential donors, funders, and partners within the sector, and are a good way to demonstrate the effectiveness of your role in driving action. Impact evaluation is an essential, reflective practice that can help you develop sustainable campaigns and initiatives that you can improve over time. Learn more about monitoring and evaluating your advocacy.
Contribution vs Attribution - Remember that there are many others working on similar objectives to yours. Consider your role in the broader mental health, health and political ecosystems when evaluating impact and articulating your advocacy wins. If you have worked in collaboration with others during an awareness day or week and participated in a campaign directly or indirectly, you contributed to change. If you are confident that you were directly responsible for achieving a change and acted independently, then that change can be attributed to you.
CASE STUDY:
In 2021, the UK’s Mental Health Foundation collaborated with Miles Richardson, Professor of Human Factors and Nature Connectedness at the University of Derby, to produce a report, policy briefing and other resources on the relationship between nature and mental health for Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW). The Foundation's MHAW 2021 report highlighted the positive impact of nature-connectedness on people's mental health and was used to inform evidence-based policy recommendations outlining clear actions for local and national governments to address issues of unequal access to nature across the UK.
To launch and disseminate these resources, a virtual parliamentary reception was held, where researchers, the government minister, other politicians, people with lived experience, and the CEO of the Foundation spoke about the evidence and the results of a new survey commissioned especially for the week. This was supported by extensive traditional and social media activities which engagingly brought together, research, personal testimonies and tips for connecting with nature using the hashtag 'ConnectWithNature.'
Prof Richardson says: "Our partnership with the Foundation benefited all involved: we reached many more thousands of people with key messages about how they can improve their mental health through meaningful, simple acts of engagement with nature, and the Foundation benefited from our research expertise and insights, knowing it was creating an authoritative awareness week informed by up-to-date research."
Centring the Voices of People with Lived Experience of Mental Health Conditions
People with lived experiences of mental health conditions have the power to catalyse change. At high-visibility moments, lived experience stories can play a crucial role in illuminating the realities of some of the most vulnerable in society, who are seldom seen and heard. Advocacy groups and grassroots organisations play an intermediary role in mainstreaming these issues and raising the concerns of persons with lived experience, making them known to the public and to those in power.
Amplifying these voices during awareness days can encourage others to share their own experiences, creating safe spaces for open dialogues that can in turn destigmatise mental health and enhance the effectiveness of your advocacy efforts. It is widely recognised within the mental health field that effective advocacy is not possible without the meaningful inclusion of persons with lived experience, and policymakers usually respond positively to stories that humanise the issues. Even beyond the mental health sector, international human rights instruments note the importance of recognising the value of individuals with psychosocial disabilities and mental health conditions, especially in promoting socio-economic and sustainable development.
Centring Lived Experience Voices - Engaging persons with lived experience of mental health conditions across all aspects of your advocacy work should be an integral part of your plans and should not be an afterthought. Ensure mechanisms are in place that can a) meaningfully harness their expertise and participation to help shape your collective advocacy messages and b) include them in the delivery of your activities to ensure that they truly represent the voices of lived experience in the most effective way for your campaign. Ensure their feedback and reflections are captured throughout the campaigning process.
Lived Experience Stories are a Gift - Individuals sharing their personal stories are sharing a part of themselves. Treat all contributions with respect, diligence and sensitivity, and always offer anonymity to protect their identity. When sharing lived-experience stories with the media or the public, follow ethical guidelines to protect people’s wellbeing, and offer to provide support throughout the process to ensure their experience is positive and empowering. Remember that people with lived experience are change makers, not just “informants”.
Engagement Parameters - It is important to create safe spaces for voices to be heard and ensure that the scope of work is aligned with the individuals' experience and skills. Always provide information about the advocacy plan and the engagement in advance and allow a reasonable time for them to make the appropriate preparations for their involvement.
Continued Collaboration - Try and consider what else you can offer and what more participants could gain from your collaboration around a high-visibility moment. This could include exposure to policymakers, or opportunities to engage in workshops and to present at meetings.
Compensation and Support - Throughout the campaign process, ensure you are remunerating people with lived experience and offering fair compensation for their time and expert contributions. Remuneration should be equal and on a par with non-lived experience participants who are involved in the project.
Timely Feedback – To ensure you are honouring the principles of effective and meaningful engagement, provide participants with timely feedback outlining how lived experience contributions were incorporated into your campaigns and the impact these contributions have had on policy or practice change. In the instances where change did not occur and contributions were not accepted, explain why this was the case.
Championing Youth Leadership
Young people are agents of change and experts in their own right. With data showing that 75% of mental health conditions begin before the age of 24, their active involvement is not only strategically important, it is also necessary, and should be standard practice for any initiatives directly focused on youth mental health and wellbeing.
Young people with lived experience are best positioned to offer practical solutions to issues that directly affect them and their peers. They can provide unique insights into the lives of this key population group, which can be used to reach the wider audiences that play an important role in influencing policy. Further, research indicates that there is a strong two-way connection between the wellbeing of young people and their meaningful participation in the decision-making processes that affect their lives. It is important to acknowledge this community’s role in influencing policy and the broader benefits of meaningful youth engagement when developing effective advocacy plans. Involving them can help to grow the community of highly engaged and passionate youth advocates, who may continue to be mental health advocates as they grow older.
Youth Leadership - Provide youth with opportunities for direct engagement, including enabling them to contribute to the design and delivery of your campaigns in a meaningful way. Lead by example and consider the role of young people in governance positions within your advocacy campaigns to ensure they are always representative and inclusive. Young people are experts and should be recognised as such when planning for large campaigns during high-visibility moments.
Spaces for New Voices - Where possible, make intentional efforts to invite and welcome new youth voices into your spaces and forums. Our current generation of youth advocates are also the decision-makers and campaigners of the future. Empowering and upskilling this group can help to build a new community of mental health advocates.
Adapting Campaigns for Younger Audiences - Younger generations are a powerful force for change, and their strong online presence makes them a key audience for awareness campaigns, especially during high-visibility moments. Collaborate closely with young people to understand the cultural and contextual factors that will affect how different age groups engage with and respond to your campaigns. Consider how youth respond to terms such as "mental health" and "lived experience" to ensure your messaging is relatable and accessible. Since younger generations tend to have a deeper understanding of online trends and marketing tools, their insights and suggested strategies can play a significant role in boosting your online campaign's relevance, engagement and visibility.
Compensation and Support - As with persons of lived experience, ensure you remunerate youth participants and offer fair compensation for their time and expert contributions, accounting for their involvement from the start of the planning process through to the execution of the advocacy strategy. The remuneration should be equal and on a par with all other participants who are involved in the project.
CASE STUDY: From 2023-2024 Teenergizer, partnered with UNICEF to launch an engaging social media information campaign to promote psychological online peer-to-peer counselling for adolescents and youth in Ukraine. High-quality video materials were created to popularise and raise awareness of the available support in the region.
Through the use of Google Analytics and search engine optimisation focusing on specific words and phrases - such as “psychological help to teenagers (психологічна допомога підліткам)” and “free psychological help for teenagers (безкоштовна психологічна допомога підліткам)”- the materials were shown as targeted ads to individuals on YouTube, or appeared as the top suggestions in their Google searches. Teenergizer successfully managed to reach over 2,600,000 teenagers and young people through this online campaign.
Data for Advocacy
Data should be one of the most effective tools for shaping and supporting your advocacy. There are many ways to utilise data for your awareness day campaigns and activities, and using existing global datasets on mental health can help enhance your work with minimal resource allocation. This data can be packaged as evidence that highlights the effects and impacts of specific policies, showcases forecasts and trend predictions, and - most importantly - illustrates the need for change. To effectively influence policymakers, shape public opinion, and capture the attention of the media, this data and evidence must be targeted to address the needs of affected communities and have a clear and specific purpose.
Considering how this information is presented and disseminated is also important for ensuring your advocacy efforts are successful. For example, you should also, as far as possible, consider how your data and messaging can be presented so that it recognises and speaks to the concerns and objectives of policymakers and decision-makers. With many stakeholders focusing on raising the profile of mental health around awareness days, opportunities may emerge for you to collaborate with local academics and campaigners to produce new data and evidence supporting your advocacy.
Tips for using data for advocacy:
Know your Audience - It is important to consider the individuals or governing bodies that you wish to influence when planning for advocacy. Be clear about the changes you wish to see in order to collect and share the right, and most relevant evidence.
Newsworthy Data - To stand out during high-visibility moments, ensure your research offers something new or provides a fresh perspective on existing data. Highlighting evidence that explores under-examined connections will not only capture attention but can also leave a lasting impression. Media outlets are often looking for unique angles when covering awareness events, so take this opportunity to share information that hasn't been widely reported or has typically been left out of public and political discourse. By presenting a different viewpoint, you can cut through the noise and make your message truly resonate with large audiences.
Generating your own Data - Polls and surveys are effective ways to collect representative samples and capture public opinion on a specific theme, or on how areas of concern intersect. A well-constructed survey can provide the evidence needed to push for policy changes. To ensure the credibility of your results and how media-worthy they are considered to be, it is generally recommended to have a representative sample of at least 1,000 participants involved in your poll, although this may vary depending on the size of your country. Learn more about opinion polling.
Partnerships with Academia - Collaborating with universities and research institutions can enhance the legitimacy of your data, especially if these are shaped well ahead of your target date. Research partnerships often result in more rigorous analysis and offer additional channels for dissemination. Partnerships with academics can be vital in both High-Income countries (HICs) and Low-Middle-Income countries (LMICs), as they might be the leading figures of authority on mental health in the region, with existing policy / government / civil society connections that can help accelerate your advocacy efforts.
Presenting Data - It is unlikely that raw figures and data sets will inspire action. Indeed, journalists and other audiences will need the data to have been analysed, and to be presented both credibly and in an easily digestible way. When presenting data, consider the human story that it represents. The most effective evidence for making a compelling case often requires both qualitative and quantitative data, combining human experiences and stories of lived experience with statistics and numbers to build a complete picture that is compelling and relatable. During high-visibility moments, present this data using clear and easy-to-understand language. Infographics can help to make some of the more complex information more accessible and engaging for non-experts, and this - coupled with a concise articulation of the practical implications of the data - will make it much harder to ignore.
Raising Public Awareness
Public awareness is often the foundation of an advocacy campaign. On crowded awareness days, it’s worth considering ways to stand out, which could include offering a new perspective and sharing concrete calls to action that are relevant and relatable for your audience. Collaboration with other stakeholders in the field can help to maximise your reach and emphasise the importance of your cause.
It’s important not to expect awareness-raising to lead to immediate change, as it will be rare for this to happen. Instead, it plays an important role in preparing the ground and ‘setting the stage’ for reform in the future. Alongside informing the public, your campaign should also seek to inspire action and grow the number of mental health advocates locally to ensure there is strong political will among the public supporting your cause.
Tips for Raising Awareness:
Multi-Stakeholder Approach - Consider collaborating with CSOs, service providers, health professionals, NGOs, academics and government officials to reach a wider demographic in your campaigns and showcase widespread support for policy and practice change. Coordinated advocacy efforts, messaging, and movements amongst a coalition of stakeholders can increase political will, and effectively build on growing momentum locally and nationally. This approach can be especially effective in low-resource settings.
Positioning mental health as a Cross-Cutting Issue - By framing mental health as a cross-cutting issue, you can expand the conversation and link it to global challenges (especially those that may be of higher priority to politicians in your region), such as poverty, education, and human rights. This not only brings more people into the discussion but also highlights how addressing mental health issues has benefits for many aspects of life. During awareness days, this can help to highlight the need for policies that connect different sectors, making mental health support more relevant for everyone.
Online and In-Person Events – High-visibility moments provide great opportunities to organise, or join, public events to disseminate your message and sensitise others to the importance of good mental health. Online events, such as webinars or social media campaigns, can engage local, national and global participants, spread information quickly, and foster discussions that increase understanding and break down stigma. In-person activities and events, such as community workshops or school visits (especially when you can invite politicians or civil servants), help to build deeper, personal connections locally and support the development of grassroots action to inspire change at the community level. Events do not necessarily need to be financially resource-intensive; in fact, through partnerships with local organisations and some digital promotion of the event, it is possible to reach large numbers of the public with a relatively small budget.
Role of Celebrities - Campaigns of all types can benefit from collaboration with influencers or celebrities. Public figures, including well-known athletes, actors and social media stars, can amplify advocacy messages by connecting them with their own personal stories. Their participation in campaigns, and public endorsement of mental health initiatives or policies, can help to spark meaningful conversations about these issues in the public domain. By strategically partnering with celebrities who have genuine connections to mental health issues and are willing to share them publicly in ways that are consistent with your own messaging and priorities, you can ensure that your campaign is authentic and resonates deeply with the general public. Celebrity collaborations are also likely to attract media attention, which can in turn place further pressure on policymakers to enact meaningful change. Such relationships take time to build and to maintain, but this investment is well worth it if you can find the right celebrity to work with.
CASE STUDY: Through the Mental Health Unit, the Nairobi Health Sector utilises a bottom-up approach uniting partners with diverse capacities, reach, and specialisations for maximum impact during high visibility moments.
For World Suicide Prevention Day 2024, 28 partners were brought together to arrange community activities such as walks to raise awareness and encourage open conversations about mental health. They led a media campaign featuring discussions with mental health experts, caregivers, and persons with lived experience of mental health conditions.
Over one million people were reached through mainstream media and over 400,000 people on social media through campaign posters, videos and bespoke hashtags ‘WalkAgainstSuicide’ and ‘NairobiAgainstSuicide.’ More than 900 people from partner organisations joined the suicide prevention walk and participated in expressive arts, a panel discussion on creating hope, and a candlelight vigil to honour those lost to suicide.
At this event, Professor Lukoye Atwoli, Dean of the Medical College for Aga Khan University, emphasised the importance of sensitising people on the issue of mental health and suicide to repeal penal codes that criminalise suicide attempts, “...if we call for social media action, we know that the people are aware of what we are envisioning which makes it easier to call the leadership to action.”
Utilising Traditional Media and Digital Platforms
A vital component of any advocacy plan should always be effective communication of your messages to the media. Effective advocacy campaigns during high-visibility moments leverage both traditional and digital media to engage broader audiences. Using media strategically has the power to influence citizens and governments, and by utilising moments when the world is watching, you have a real opportunity for your message to be heard - but there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. You will need to choose the channels and outlets that are best suited for you to reach your target audience.
This could range from traditional mass media, such as television, radio and newspapers and magazines, to digital and social media channels. Hosting and promoting campaigns on social media can be incredibly effective. Through platforms such as X (previously known as Twitter), LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, it is possible to reach many people beyond your networks over a short period of time, making it an especially valuable medium for information dissemination and awareness raising. If you are leveraging multiple channels for your advocacy, ensure your messages and calls to action are consistent, to increase their influence and memorability.
Media Strategies to Maximise Impact
Country context - Every country has a different etiquette for working with their media. In some countries, you must pay for media coverage; in others, you need to cultivate relationships with those interested in reporting on mental health (although it is also possible to fund editorial content, for example in a special supplement, which will then be clearly labelled as such). Be mindful that in some parts of the world ‘advocacy’ can be seen as a political threat, and governments can be very sensitive to direct or implied criticism. Where this is applicable, it can be beneficial to talk about the positives of a government’s approach to mental health, while gently introducing something that you’d like to change.
Identifying Media Outlets and Journalists - Different media outlets have different audiences. Think about ‘who’ you want to influence and which media they will be likely to consume. Once you have identified the outlets, look for journalists sympathetic to your cause and contact them directly. You can start the relationship-building well in advance of your target date. If you don’t know their email address, you can usually work it out by finding at least one individual email for someone in that organisation. The email address you want to use will likely follow the same format, e.g. firstname.secondname@bbc.co.uk.
Go with Something to Offer - Once you have identified the journalist/s you want to engage, they will want you to offer them something interesting and ‘new.’ This could be new mental health data, a new report with a local/national spokesperson who can talk about the issue, case studies of people with lived experience that they could film/interview or a new poll/survey that identifies how the public thinks or feels about a given theme.
Share the Problem ‘and’ the Solution and its Benefits - When pitching or talking to the media, it is important to talk about both the problem and the solution. The part where you identify the solution – and its benefits - is where you are giving decision-makers a choice to make, about whether to enact change. Try to make that choice as attractive and clear as possible. For example, your proposed solution could save the country X amount of money, or it could lead to 20% more productivity.
Give Journalists the Right Amount of Time - How much time a journalist needs to write their story depends on the product they are producing. Sometimes news stories will need less than a week of advance notice, but journalists will be focused on a high-visibility moment reasonably well in advance. They will also be approached by many advocates to cover the day in a particular way, so you need to contact them several weeks beforehand to let them know your plans, and then provide them with the material (such as your press release, personal testimonies and any accompanying digital resources etc) at least a week before. For online journalism, the lead-in time can be shorter. However, if you want to pitch a long-form piece, such as a feature article (especially in a magazine) or a documentary, you may well need to give several months' notice for research, to identify other people to talk to, and to fit with the longer schedules journalists and their editors are working to for producing their publication.
Mental Health Language - The language we use to talk about mental health is an essential tool for reducing stigma. Many reporters use careless or harmful language when reporting about mental health issues, which can have lasting and damaging effects on people with lived experience of mental health conditions and their families. Whether you are briefing a journalist, or writing an article of your own, we advise you to read the WHO guidance on preventing suicide for media professionals.
Driving Effective Social Media Campaigns
The Three R’s - The "Three R's" of online advocacy - Relevant, Relatable, and Responsive - help to ensure content resonates and effectively engages audiences. During high-visibility moments, align campaigns with the curated hashtags for the awareness day so that you can capture the attention of fellow campaigners who are monitoring the movement online. You can also enhance your online presence and engagement by staying on top of trending content on each social media platform. Keep an eye on how audiences are receiving your content and reacting to it and be ready to adapt and to adopt new strategies as needed. To strengthen your connection with the audience, ensure you are optimising content for different platforms and devices while remaining authentic to your core message.
Paid Digital Campaigns - If you have resources available for online marketing, paid digital advertising can be an effective way to maximise the reach and impact of your advocacy activities. Platforms such as Google Ads, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram can run campaigns that target specific communities based on their demographics, interests and online behaviours. Paid campaigns can be flexible and adjusted to suit your specific needs, so - even with limited budgets - you can ensure you’re accessing the right audience for the greatest impact. If you have non-profit status, organisations like Google may provide you with access to a limited number of free ads for cause-oriented campaigns, but this may not be available to all charities and CSOs.
Monitoring Impact - High levels of engagement may not directly correlate with positive behaviour change. To track impact, it is important before and after your campaign to monitor trends over time, particularly the use of specific hashtags, taglines, and/or key messages. This will help to better understand the lasting effects of the initiative on your specific audience(s).
Sustainable Impact - Building an engaged community online is a key factor in the success of any digital advocacy strategy. Posting consistently, with clear, recognisable branding and interactive content that invites engagement, will boost the impact of your campaigns. By creating dedicated spaces such as social media groups or forums, you can continue building on the momentum around awareness days and keep the conversation going.
In 2021, Taskeen Health Initiative launched the #MujrimNahiMareez (“Not a Criminal, but a Patient”) advocacy campaign to address Section 325 of the Pakistan Penal Code, which criminalised suicide attempts. By utilising a mix of animated videos, celebrity-endorsed public service announcements, and collaborations with media outlets - including social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, and mass media like news channels, political talk shows and morning talk shows - the campaign effectively raised awareness about the mental health factors contributing to suicide.
To capitalise on the momentum around World Suicide Prevention Day and garner additional public support, Taskeen heightened its media engagement. As part of the ongoing #MujrimNahiMareex campaign, they engaged influencers, journalists, and government officials to broaden the discussion, all of which ultimately led to the passage of the Suicide Decriminalisation Bill in Pakistan.
Reaching Policymakers
For many mental health champions, one of the ultimate goals of advocacy around international and national awareness days is to influence policy. Policymakers are more likely to engage with mental health campaigns that align with their objectives, and are backed by strong data, public support and media attention. It’s also important to remember that politicians, public officials and members of professional bodies are part of the ‘general public’. They are also affected in their personal lives by the issues that are being raised and advocated for, and the human stories that illuminate them. When developing your key asks for policymakers, ensure they are clear and relatable, and consider what can reasonably be achieved in your specific political context.
Identifying a supportive contact within government can mark a significant turning point for advocates, and this can be easier around or in the lead-up to awareness days. Some civil service workers and politicians may be more inclined to listen and learn around awareness days and may demonstrate public support for campaigns and advocacy initiatives as momentum grows. In recent years, politicians in several countries have chosen such days to make big announcements about relevant reforms and their commitments to mental health.
Tips for reaching policymakers:
Choose your Approach - When engaging with policymakers, there are typically two approaches that you can take, an insider approach (as a “helping figure”) or an outsider approach (“speaking truth to power”). With the insider approach, you can work as an ally, building relations with the necessary policymakers and civil servants and supporting them to find the correct solutions collaboratively. The outsider approach can be more public in challenging governments. You may choose to release statements criticising authority figures for the state of mental health in your community and put pressure on policymakers to enact meaningful change with urgency. Both approaches have their value and can be effective in their own ways (and it is often campaigning that first opens the door that can lead to an insider approach). It is worth considering this from the beginning, when planning your advocacy strategy, and the tone you wish to adopt in your communications.
Changing your Approach - It is also important to be aware that you might begin by seeking to build relationships and work more on the ‘inside’ (which can include supporting official public statements and media work), but then need to shift to a more challenging public approach if the relevant government, minister or official changes and the new one is not so open to hearing you, or to working on the issues. It is also important for CSOs to achieve a careful balance between the two approaches, in order to retain their integrity and credibility. This usually involves having candid discussions about the extent and nature of the support you can give to government, and your influence on the inside will in part come from policymakers knowing that you will disagree with them in public should this be necessary. They are unlikely to expect anything less.
Understand Their Priorities - Before approaching a policymaker, try and understand their goals and align your message with what they care about. It helps to contextualise your arguments within the local, political context and to showcase mental health as a cross-cutting issue that intersects with other political concerns. Policymakers are generally keen to know about issues that are important to voters and impact the well-being of their community. Personal stories shared by individuals from their respective regions are likely to have an impact on local leaders, as will data about the effects of new or existing policies on issues like the economy, education, healthcare, welfare, housing etc.
Be the Experts - It's important to remember that policymakers may not always have a deep understanding of common mental health issues. When interacting with government officials, you may find that you are the subject matter expert. Be prepared to share your knowledge and recommendations when the opportunity arises, and flag issues that sit at the intersection of mental health that might otherwise be overlooked, such as the impact of other government policies on people’s mental health, or on people with mental health conditions. Establishing yourself as a trustworthy ally, and representing a coalition of multiple stakeholders, can be mutually beneficial, especially during awareness days when policymakers are often under pressure to make statements on the state of mental health in their regions. This is an ideal time to present clear and specific policy requests in the form of concise messages that include strong data, and stories from people with lived experience, including youth advocates.
Engaging with Service Providers - Sometimes the best way to influence policymakers is through collaboration with the individuals that enact policy and provide services to those in need. Through this process, you will gain unique insights into how implementers interpret policies and better understand the impact of those policies on different populations. Not only can service providers strengthen your research, but they can also play a crucial role as individual advocates, in helping to mobilise a vital group within the health, social care and mental health ecosystems that is directly affected by the changes made to mental health policy and systems.
Role of Ministries of Health - Working with Ministries of Health, particularly their mental health divisions or programmes, can be crucial in driving advocacy efforts on awareness days. It is worth familiarising yourself with the key employees within the ministries and civil service to know who to approach. Align your campaigns with national and local health policies and priorities and find out if ministers can participate in local events and amplify advocacy efforts through official platforms to provide credibility and increase your access to a wider audience. Where possible, try and advocate for an intergovernmental approach on awareness days and encourage collaboration between various government bodies. Coordinated, cross-sectoral, dialogue is more likely to drive meaningful and longer-lasting change.
Major International Awareness Days and Weeks
International Day of Happiness
20th March - Global
World Bipolar Day
30th March – Global
World Maternal Mental Health Day
The first Wednesday in May - Global
Mental Health Awareness Week
Usually the second full week of May - UK
Mental Health Action Day
Thursday of UK Mental Health Awareness Week in May - Global
International Youth Day
12th August - Global
World Suicide Prevention Day
10th September - Global
World Mental Health Day
10th October - Global
International Human Rights Day
10th December - Global
The development of this guide was led by Divya Sharma with support from Antonis Kousoulis, Lucy Thorpe and Global Mental Health Action Network (Action Network) members from around the world. Action Network members played a crucial role in driving the focus of this guide and shaping its content.
