Bangladesh’s Fairooz Faizah Beether has been announced as the recipient of the 2021 Global Goals Changemaker Award for Goalkeepers by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
The Goalkeepers Global Goals Awards are an annual recognition of outstanding individuals taking action to help meet the global goals by 2030.
With the Changemaker Prize 2021, the Gates Foundation is honoring Fairooz Faizah Beether for his work in promoting health and well-being within the framework of Sustainable Development Goal-3 (SDG-3), according to a press release.
Faizah co-founded Moner School, an online platform that aims to raise awareness about mental health and ensure equal access to mental health care across the country.
Faizah was among three people who received the three additional Global Goals goaltender awards this year for their work in support of the Global Goals in their local communities.
Among them, Jenifer Colpas of Colombia received the 2021 Progress Award and Liberia’s Satta Sheriff the 2021 Campaign Award, according to the press release.
The main prize, the Global Goalkeeper Award 2021, went to Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, former United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women.
Launched as an extension of a three-month project in 2018, Moner School is an initiative to educate people and provide them with a space where they can freely talk about mental health and get help when they need it. .
“We just wanted a place where people can write letters anonymously, so that we could set up a meeting with an advisor,” Faizah, a business administration student at Khulna University, told the Daily Star. .
From there, seven strangers who met as part of a youth platform project began to collect people’s stories, connect them with counselors and respond to their needs.
Three months later, at the end of the project, five members of the original group, including Faizah, made it their passion project, and the Moner School was born.
Now, The Moner School is an anonymous online platform that works with young people to educate them about the importance of mental health care through training, workshops, online mental health first aid service. 24/7 and talk therapy.
“We not only try to provide counseling or therapy sessions, we also try to educate people about how important mental health is, as well as train them in mental health tools,” Faizah said.
So far, the Moner School has served around 900 young people from the interior of the country and a few more from several foreign countries, according to Faizah.
About her inspiration behind her effort, she described her own life story.
For Faizah and her mother, their courage to prioritize their own mental health was the first step in healing from a personal tragedy that shattered their sense of security.
Faizah said her father was killed when she was 13.
The house was no longer secure, and how the trauma of losing her father was on her own to bear. It didn’t take long for her mother to recognize her daughter’s depression and give her the help she needed.
Years later, when Faizah’s mother suffered the brunt of her loss, it was Fairah who returned the favor. As they emerged from their own suffering, Faizah was called upon to pursue a career in mental health.
Faizah continues to make mental wellness and education a part of her daily life. When life gets too loud, she takes a break and practices mindfulness by walking and meditating.
And with the expertise of psychologists and psychiatrists, she can access the training and tools to build and build on a stronger online community for her peers for years to come.
Commenting on the winners, Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said: “These winners show how women are leading the way in delivering innovative solutions needed to rebuild our communities and nations.
“This year’s recipients continue to inspire us as they work tirelessly to create a more equal, resilient and compassionate world. “
