With generous support from a funding partner, in June 2022 batyr was invited and able to join a select group of 400 of the world’s most innovative social entrepreneurs, philanthropists and impact investors from over 35 countries at the NEXUS Global Summit in New York.
NEXUS is a global community of young changemakers driving innovative solutions to some of the world’s greatest social and environmental problems, including mental health. Since batyr first attended in 2019, we have been actively involved in the community, building relationships, expanding our network and learning and sharing best practice when it comes to preventative mental health approaches.
It’s shocking that on average, governments allocated just 2% of their health budgets to mental health over the last five years – a figure that is in no way commensurate with the mental ill-health people experience. Globally, one out of every seven adolescents between 10 and 19 years old experiences a mental health condition. And, tragically, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death for adolescents across the world.
These figures tell us the scale of the problem worldwide, not just in Australia. We can’t work in a bubble and we need to look beyond our own backyards. It is critical we expand our horizons to work with and learn from others working in preventative mental health education and stigma reduction around the world, to accelerate change and impact now.
Due to the lack of government funding, there is a significant role for philanthropy to play in scaling up what’s working when it comes to youth mental health approaches. NEXUS’ recognition of the power of philanthropy has led to mobilising leaders from diverse backgrounds to come together and explore innovative ways of creating sustainable change.
batyr’s Founder & Chairman, Sebastian Robertson, and batyr’s Head of Partnerships, Lucinda Steggles, are on the NEXUS Global Mental Health Council and regularly meet with a small group of world leaders in mental health to mobilise communities for actionable change towards positive mental health outcomes for all.
The Australia Delegation attending the NEXUS Global Summit
Lucinda’s additional role as Chair of the Australian arm of NEXUS has enabled batyr to connect with individuals across the country in between global summits, which will be highlighted further at this year’s NEXUS 2022 Australia Summit, 2-4 November.
Being part of the NEXUS network allows batyr to see worldwide trends on topics that all intersect with mental health, and enables us to be part of the global conversation, so that ultimately we are able to evolve to not only meet the needs of young people, but to influence the systems around them. We look forward to building on the relationships formed and continue to inform our work with best practice approaches to do our part in improving mental health outcomes for young people now and into the future.