Movember allocates $3.5m to 11 men’s health projects
Digital Dads Groups, a video channel that challenges perceptions of traditional masculinity, a Check Mate app that allows young male Aussie tradesmen to have conversations about their wellbeing and check in on their mates … these are just a few of the projects that have been selected by Movember to combat escalating social isolation among men in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Movember allocated AUD$3.5 million in funding to 11 men’s health projects across Australia, Canada, the UK and Ireland over the next two years as part of its Social Connections Challenge.
The Challenge called for new strategies and initiatives that would address social isolation using technology.
“We were looking for fresh, innovative technology-based ideas to address the problem of loneliness, isolation and improve social connectedness in men and strengthen their overall mental health,” said Global Director of Mental Health at Movember, Brendan Maher.
“For this challenge, we prioritised men who are at greater risk of social isolation because of where they live, their socio-economic status or cultural background.”
Movember will work with the recipients over the next 12-24 months to co-develop 11 projects with scope to inject more funding into those that have a strong response when tested on target populations.
Projects selected for funding in Australia are:
Digital Dads Groups, a digital version of Dads Groups established by Tom Docking that encourages new dads to connect.
Man Cave TV – a video platform that uses social media to connect young men with tools and role models that improve their emotional intelligence, relationship skills and ‘connection to the world around them.’
The Young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander online mental health and wellbeing education and support project – run by the Menzies School of Health Research in Darwin to meet the needs of young Indigenous males across the Northern Territory and based on the Young Black Men project, a social media-based health promotion program first developed in the US.
The Check Mate app, designed by a Victoria-based project team using Artificial Intelligence, which enables men to check in with themselves and each other and can detect signs of high-risk where a human moderator is necessary.
Find out more about projects selected for funding in Canada, Ireland and the UK
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