MARY Immaculate College’s campus buildings have this month gone ‘green’ in support of the 9th annual Green Ribbon Campaign and to underline MIC’s commitment to promoting positive mental health attitudes and social inclusion.
The Green Ribbon campaign, held every year since 2013, aims to emphasise the importance of ending mental health stigma by encouraging discussions about and deepening an understanding of mental health. By encouraging people to wear the Green Ribbon or placing the Green Ribbon in an email or other communication platform, individuals can show their support for the campaign and their commitment to influencing positive change in society through creating safe spaces for talking about mental health.
Commencing on Friday 10 September, World Suicide Prevention Day, the Tara Building on MIC’s Limerick campus and the main building of the Thurles campus have been illuminated in green light as part of the campaign which will be supported by a range of activities during the month of September. This campaign will culminate in a ‘wear green to see change’ fundraiser in the final week of the campaign.
MIC’s support for the campaign is the result of a cross-College initiative supported by the Mary Immaculate College Students’ Union (MISU), the Health Promotion Office and the Leadership for INClusion in the Early Years (LINC) Programme.
Commenting on MIC’s support of See Change’s 9th Annual Green Ribbon Campaign, Professor Emer Ring, Dean of Early Childhood and Teacher Education at MIC said: “We are delighted to be part of the #GreenRibbonIRL campaign and working with all of our colleagues and students to #EndTheStigma.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has further amplified the importance of us all being open to having a conversation about mental health and letting someone know you are there for them and have time to listen. We are looking forward to the events planned by See Change around this year’s theme of how we can create a more inclusive society and ensure no one is excluded.”
Barbara Brennan, See Change Programmes Team Leader was delighted to see MIC support this worthy initiative saying: “It’s fantastic that Mary Immaculate College is getting involved in our Green Ribbon campaign to help tackle mental health stigma.
“Many young people still believe that mental health problems must remain hidden. We want to change this perception and encourage people to have open and honest conversations about mental health. Simply by wearing a green ribbon, you’re letting people know it’s ok to have a conversation about mental health with you.”
This year’s campaign by See Change includes a five week programme that focuses on the topic of “exclusion” to understand what exclusion feels like, identifying social exclusion, the behaviour of exclusion and culminating in using this new understanding of the topic to commit to “see change” in social inclusion.
There are a number of ways to support this campaign including the wearing of a green ribbon, the international symbol for mental health awareness, supporting the campaign online by adding the Green Ribbon twibbon to your social media platforms and by spreading awareness using the hashtags #GreenRibbonIRL #EndTheStigma.
More information on how to become involved available here.
