One effective way to make a difference is by contacting politicians in your own community…

 

- List of MPs and MLAs (Adobe PDF)
 

Individual Letters:

 

A personalized letter to introduce or sensitize a policy maker to issues can be very effective and writing a letter to a politician is easy:

 

 

Organizational Letters:

 

A personalized letter to a politician from the President of a service organization that you belong to can be a powerful message as to the importance of the issue. The organization does not need to be “partisan” in any way, they just need to convey that this issue is important.

 

Media Contact:

 

The mass media is interested in “human” stories. If we can humanize our issues with specific local experience, we may be able to introduce local media in a “human interest” story. Politicians are highly sensitive to the media. Don’t forget that letters to the editor statistically have a large readership of the better informed and involved citizenry. “Open line” radio shows often provide an opportunity to raise issues and concerns where a broader public exposure is sought.

 

Fight Stigma:

 

We believe stigma is one of the greatest barriers in society. It is often exacerbated by media portrayals of people with mental illness as dangerous, as well as discriminatory language such as “crazy” or “loony”. We can help eradicate stigma by understanding the facts and myths about mental illness and addiction: