You’ve no doubt spotted the vivid Blue Trees of the Blue Tree Project around regional WA. But what they stand for is something incredibly meaningful for mental health support and awareness – a visual reminder to check in with ourselves, our loved ones and mates who may be going through a tough time.
In this episode dedicated to Mental Health Week (7-14 October), Blue Tree Project Founder and CEO (and 2022 Young Australian of the Year WA) Kendall Whyte joins our host Grey Johnston to talk about the positive impact of these iconic Blue Trees to spark conversations, change deeply engrained attitudes and prejudices and create a more mentally healthy future for our communities.
Kendall explains how it all started as a grassroots movement in 2019 to help others avoid suffering the pain of loss her own family has experienced; how the movement has spread across WA, Australia and all continents (just Antarctica left to conquer); and how their mission has branched out, getting boots on the ground in regional WA to grow community engagement, deliver awareness sessions and facilitate training.
Touching on the themes of this year’s Mental Health Week (Mind. Body. Environment.), Kendall also shares some of the ways we can help ourselves and others take better care of mind and body and take steps to build a supportive environment around us.
If you are in need of support, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or text for support, or access online chat via lifeline.org.au (all available 24/7). Alternatively, visit bluetreeproject.com.au/seek-help for more support options. If you are in a life-threatening situation, please call 000.
Visit bluetreeproject.com.au for more info about the initiatives discussed in this episode, including:
How to bring people together to paint and register your own tree.
How to get an awareness session up and running in your local community.
And where to access training to upskill your workforce.Follow the ‘CSBP Grow Better podcast’ to be the first to know about future episodes.
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