Wellbeing Summit: A Free Interactive Event for the Community
November 11, 2019 11:40 AM
by Catalina Langen
This Saturday, the City of Santa Monica will launch its first Wellbeing Summit. It’s a free, interactive event for the community designed to engage, inspire, and cultivate action by Santa Monicans for their own personal wellbeing and the wellbeing of their larger community. Santa Monica College’s stunningly remodeled Center for Media and Design will host local residents, business leaders, government officials, and non-profit partners, in order to share their insights and help develop new strategies to address some of the more serious challenges to the community’s overall wellbeing.
Santa Monica’s commitment to wellbeing began in 2015 when the City won the Bloomberg Philanthropies Mayors Challenge award for its idea of a Wellbeing Index. The Index is a measurement tool that provides a data-driven understanding of how Santa Monicans are doing and highlights areas where the City and community can work to improve community wellbeing. The City’s efforts to put resident wellbeing at the center of decision-making have led Santa Monica to win the Robert Wood Johnson Culture of Health Prize in 2016 and to be the only North American city to win the 2019 Wellbeing Cities Award. The Wellbeing Summit will feature global experts, innovative workshops, and interactive experiences to bring the concept of wellbeing to life, and is intended to be the start of renewed commitment on every level to improve wellbeing. Individuals can apply for $500 microgrants to take action in their neighborhoods, and organizations are invited to take the lead on new initiatives that impact wellbeing.
Workshop & Speaker Highlights
Thirty-five workshops with local and international experts will cover the many areas that factor into community wellbeing, including mental health, equity, youth happiness, and economic opportunity. Conversations and interactive experiences, include:
How Are You Doing? How Are the People Around You?
| Xavier Amador, a world-renowned clinical psychologist and forensic expert, shares how to more effectively communicate and create trusting relationships with people struggling with mental illness that lead to treatment and recovery in his sessions with Gabriela Canedo, titled “I AM NOT SICK, I Don’t Need Help!". |
What It Is, What It Isn't & Why It Matters
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Anita Chandra & Carol Graham will share with attendees about the Wellbeing Movement, why it’s important and how they contribute. |
Calling All Changemakers!
| Jam Session for Changemakers and Community Organizers! Finding and Funding Your Idea for a Wellbeing Microgrant - Spanish interpretation will be provided Pico Wellbeing Project: Phase 2 Teaser - Pico Wellbeing Project Staff Spanish interpretation will be provided Civic Love - Learn how YOU can make a change in YOUR community, starting now. - Evan Meyer Spanish interpretation will be provided |
Normal Sucks: Stop Trying to Fix People & Start Empowering Them To Succeed
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Jonathan Mooney – author relates a journey navigating life as a neuro-diverse kid diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD who didn't learn to read until he was twelve to the realization that he wasn’t the problem—the system and the concept of normal were. The revelation saved Mooney’s life and fundamentally changed his outlook. |
Walking the Talk: What’s Next for Wellbeing?
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A Community Conversation with City leaders” Gleam Davis, Santa Monica Mayor, Rick Cole, Santa Monica City Manager & Juliana Essen, public anthropologist outlines post-summit steps for the City of Santa Monica. |
Learn About Local Resources
| The eLibrary, Join Us For an 'Appy' Hour! Learn about the library's e-resources and get hands-on experience at our technology "petting zoo." Interactive stations include virtual reality and more. Spanish interpretation will be provided Preserving Our Diversity (POD): Learn about Santa Monica's Cash Assistance Program for Seniors. |
Cultural Wellbeing in the Workplace
| Theo Edmonds & Cameron Lister, University of Louisville Center for Creative Placemaking” - From hospitality, design, aesthetics and lighting, to leadership and management, attendees will hear a dynamic presentation delivered by leading Placemaking industry experts. |
For & About Santa Monica's Kids and Teens
| Where Wellbeing Begins: Santa Monica's Support for Early Learning City of Santa Monica and Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District: A Collective Impact Approach to Service Delivery - Angel Villaseñor and Shuli Lotan |
Youth Tracked: Geared for Ages 12-20 (Parents, please register yourself as the adult guardian on behalf of any minor-aged participants)
| “I’m Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want to Come”. Social Anxiety in the Classroom. Are You More Free or More Yourself at School? "Spilling the Tea" and Switching Roles Anxiety: The Big Questions |
The City stands ready to partner with all who are interested in creating innovative solutions to local challenges. For more information and to register, visit SantaMonica.gov/WellbeingSummit.
Authored By
Catalina Langen
Community Engagement Coordinator