2018-19 Global MINDS Fellowship Program
The 2018-19 Global MINDS Fellowship Program (GMFP) was officially launched with the pre-Summer Institute in June, followed by the 2018 Summer Institute, which took place in at Brescia University College at Western University in London, Ontario from July 15 to July 27, 2018.
At the beginning of the Summer Institute, Fellows were placed into four high-performing teams and matched to one of the following four complex challenge topics put forward by our Community Partners (bracketed):
1. Addictions and mental health (Middlesex-London Health Unit)
2. Refugee and new immigrant mental health (London InterCommunity Health Centre)
3. Indigenous mental well-being (Wulaawsuwiikaan Healing Lodge and St. Joseph’s Health Care London)
4. Mental health system integration (Canadian Mental Health Association Middlesex and St. Joseph’s Health Care London)
Through consultation with their Community Partners, Faculty and Community Coaches, Fellow Mentors, and stakeholders in the community, including beneficiaries, teams worked to deeply understand and define a complex challenge question and began to develop a solution using social innovation tools taught throughout the Summer Institute.
By the end of the two weeks, a community-oriented and contextualized narrative of the complex challenge had been developed and a disruptive solution was ready to be pitched by each team. On the last day of the Summer Institute, teams pitched their solutions in front of an audience made up of community, academic, and hospital representatives, as well as interested community members, media and beneficiaries. All teams pitched successfully to receive seed funding of $2500 CAD to implement their solutions over the course of the Fellowship Program.
Solutions developed and pitched by the teams were:
Team Hamou: To use culturally-sensitive approaches to facilitate the healing process of the Yazidi women living in London, Ontario.
Team 7Gen: To create a self-sustaining, Indigenous-led platform for Indigenous youth and children to connect with their identity, cultures, and traditions using digital literacy.
Team Re-Mind London: To offer a suite of innovations that could together improve awareness of available Canadian Mental Health Association programs and supports to clients, families, and staff, as well as build community connections for individuals receiving treatment within Parkwood Institute.
Team YOUnify: To offer a group of people who are accessing the temporary overdose prevention site the opportunity to participate in the process of creating participatory videos, facilitated by experts from the community, to allow participants to identify their perspectives, strengths, and interests.
Teams are currently working to further develop and implement their solutions and are supported through the post-Summer Institute curriculum, which includes teaching and learning sessions, as well as professional development opportunities.
