At the ORTUS Foundation, we discovered something striking. People working across disciplines in mental health don’t talk to each other. We spent a year meeting with academics, practitioners, researchers, people developing novel therapies, ethicists, policymakers, and the parents of young people who have taken their own lives. What we found made us want to tear down some of the barriers to shared information and get people talking.
We brought together a cross disciplinary group of about fifty experts for a symposium, Exploring Transformational Changes for the Mental Health Crisis, for a frank and cathartic conversation, the first in a series.
Featured speakers included:
Senator Cory Booker who is working across the aisle on legislation to promote research and access to life saving therapeutics.
John MacPhee, The Jed Foundation (JED) CEO, leads what is probably the most effective organization in the country in preparing educational institutions with holistic ways to support students struggling with mental health issues and get in front of suicidal ideation before it manifests.
Dr. Amy McGuire, a bioethicist at Baylor College of Medicine whose research focuses on psychedelics and novel therapies. Amy’s Ted Talk is here.
Peggy Lim, a mental health advocate, teacher, and parent of a young adult who died due to mental health struggles. Peggy shared her personal journey and learnings, engaging the audience to understand the voids and opportunities in high school and college to support young people experiencing mental health issues.
