ILFA Project - Information and Learning for All
Our work with the ILFA Project has produced some creative work to gain greater understanding of minority ethnic young people’s experiences of mental health stigma.
We’ve been working with the ILFA Project (Information and Learning for All) since 2023 as part of our work with minority ethnic communities.
ILFA is an organisation that ‘collaborates with communities in Scotland to navigate a more inclusive future’.
We have been working with Dr Judy Wasige, founder of ILFA and lecturer in Public Health at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU), to design and deliver Voices Through the Lens since September 2023.
Voices Through the Lens
This research project adopted a creative approach to tackle mental health stigma, using photography to explore young people’s experiences of mental health stigma and discrimination.
The project used PhotoVoice methodology, where photos are used to help gather a clearer picture of people’s experiences, to increase understanding of ethnic minority experiences of mental health stigma and discrimination.
The project empowered young people to participate, explore their experiences of stigma and discrimination in Glasgow and share their stories, raising awareness of the impact of stigma and discrimination they’ve experienced in their communities and beyond.
See Me and public health researchers and students from GCU have worked collaboratively on the project, with participants as co-researchers.
The project has created a safe space for young people from minoritised ethnic communities to talk about their mental health more confidently, using creative methods. It’s given participants the knowledge and skills to talk about their experience of mental health stigma and discrimination through photography. It has provided them with a platform to make their voices heard and contribute as co-researchers to a research project.
*See Me recognises that terminology and labels used to refer to social groups is ethically and politically complex, can be harmful and is subject to debate and update.
On our website we have used the terminology partners themselves or cited publications have used to refer to the communities they are led by or referring to. We are committed to continually engaging with this critical debate to understand and limit harm.