A $1.7 million grant from Movember Canada will allow Dr. Heather Stuart, Bell Canada Mental Health and Anti-Stigma chair; Shu-Ping Chen of Public Health Services; and Terry Krupa, School of Rehabilitation Therapy, to create a campus-wide effort to improve men’s mental health relating to substance use, involving a team of 25 male students.

Most of the 25 students are second-years. When applying for the program, which will last three years, applicants had to write a letter that explained what they could contribute to the group. All of the members are concerned with the culture of substance use and overuse, and some have had overuse affect them.

The group’s first activity will be a student summit on September 12 and 13 that focuses on the link between substance use and mental health, as well as having the students come up with campus activity ideas. The activities will seek to engage the campus in creating sustainable cultural change.