USAID Invites US Surgeon General, Grassroot Soccer to Highlight Youth Mental Health at Policy Launch Event

USAID invited U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy and Grassroot Soccer to discuss the importance of youth mental health, and showcase Grassroot Soccer’s mental health work, at a special launch event in Washington, D.C. for USAID’s new mental health policy earlier this summer.

USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health Dr. Atul Gawande interviewed Grassroot Soccer Zambia’s Carol Manyele about Grassroot Soccer’s unique approach of using soccer games and metaphors to teach critical health knowledge and coping skills.

“Young people are excited, young people are looking forward to coming to our sessions, and young people have a safe space where they can confidently talk about mental health,” Manyele shared with Dr. Gawande.

“Mental health doesn’t exist as a category out there on the side, well circumscribed and cordoned off from everything else,” Dr. Murthy said at the event. “It is a fuel that allows us to show up in our lives – for our families, our work, in our schools, and in our communities.”

Watch highlights from the event here.

You can also watch the recorded event in its entirety, and download USAID’s Mental Health Position Paper, here.