Research
Grant Recipient
University of California, San Francisco
The JWB Foundation awarded a $1.2 million grant to the University of California, San Francisco, (UCSF) to conduct a gold-standard study to determine the effect of positive stress on mental health.
The measure the effect of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and the Wim Hof Method of Breathing and Cold Training on mental health. The study will also investigate ways meditation influences depression. The research is expected to provide seminal insight into the role of exercise, breathing, cold therapy and meditation on mental health, providing information on how daily habits such as breathing techniques change how the body responds to stress and improves mood and physical health. UCSF is a public research university. Those enrolled in the study will wear sensors to measure how your body responds to the tasks, give saliva and blood samples to show metabolic changes, and keep detailed diaries tracking mood and sleep.
As part of the University of California system, UCSF is dedicated entirely to health science. It has produced five Nobel Prize winners featuring breakthrough research in cancer, neuroscience, aging and stem cells.
Grant Recipient
IHRSA - The Global Health and Fitness Association
The JWB Foundation supported IHRSA in assessing the existing awareness and knowledge of fitness industry professionals about the impact of physical activity on mental health and well-being, as well as providing a brief educational intervention to increase awareness.
Evidence suggests physical activity is an important contributor to mental health, social and emotional health, and quality of life, and has the potential to positively impact well-being across the continuum of mental health and mental illness. Most health and fitness industry professionals are generally aware of the positive impact of exercise on some aspects of mental health (including stress, happiness, and mood), but are not as familiar with the specific benefits of physical activity for people with clinical and subclinical mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, or substance use disorder. This project, entitled Mental Health Education and Awareness for Fitness Professionals, aims to assess and address this lack of awareness, and provide resources for clubs to address mental health. IHRSA represents over 200,000 health clubs, gyms, and studios across the globe, and has over 7,850 members employing 560,000 fitness industry professionals.
Grant Recipient
Movement and Mental Health Report: Reviewing the Evidence
Is cycling good for depression? Does yoga help with anxiety? This report allows everyone from individuals to families to health professionals to learn what the scientific evidence to date says about the effects of different types of exercise on an array of mental health outcomes.
The link between movement, exercise, fitness and mental health has been investigated in more than 10,000 scientific studies. Yet even healthcare professionals have difficulty identifying evidence supporting what forms of movement support mental health. The JWB Foundation has taken on the task of reviewing the evidence to date, and summarizing it in a report and data visualization for professionals and the public. Through this audit and analysis, the JWB Foundation will provide information linking different types of exercise and movement to various aspects of mental health. The report also will guide scientists in determining what new research would best support this growing base of knowledge. Anticipated launch: April 15th, 2021.
Programs
We support programs and initiatives that integrate evidence-based holistic approaches into the mental health care delivery system
Grant Recipient
Holistic Life Foundation
The JWB Foundation supported the Holistic Life Foundation to provide yoga and mindfulness education to underserved youth and adults in the Baltimore, MD community and beyond.
HLF seeks to improve social, community, educational and emotional outcomes in low-income, underserved communities by providing multi-faceted programming (including yoga, mindfulness, and human and environmental health) that empowers youth, families, and adults. HLF provides programs to replace detention in inner-city schools, and in recreation centers, group homes, the Baltimore Juvenile Detention Center, and other venues. HLF reaches adults at drug treatment centers, mental illness facilities, colleges, senior centers, schools and wellness centers across the nation.
Grant Recipient
National Center for Healthy Veterans
The JWB Foundation supported the National Center for Healthy Veterans to provide programs and research surrounding their mission to “Return Healthy Veterans to America.”
NCHV helps Veterans who are stuck in trauma or transition through a natural healing environment, community living to defeat isolation, dignified work to provide purpose, faith-based life skills and trauma recovery programs to regain mental and emotional balance, and career preparation to enable professional success. NCHV emphasizes wellness through empirically based conventional and alternative protocols to help Veterans achieve physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, and relational wellness and give back to America as healthy parents and spouses, business leaders, educators, coaches, tradesmen, and societal role models.
Grant Recipient
Johns Hopkins Hospital
The JWB Foundation donated fitness equipment for an exercise room for the adolescent ward at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins Hospital. The Johns Hopkins Hospital is ranked #1 in the nation for Psychiatry, in accordance with the U.S. News & World Report’s 2020-2021 Best Hospitals list.
Grant Recipient
Catch-A-Lift
The JWB Foundation in 2018 funded a grant to the Catch-A-Lift Foundation to provide free Planet Fitness health club memberships to veterans suffering from combat-related mental health issues – and it continues to work with the organization’s director to assist these men and women.
The Catch-A-Lift Fund enables post-9/11 combat-wounded veterans throughout the United States to recover and rehabilitate both physically and mentally through physical fitness, motivation and support. Since its founding in 2010, Catch-A-Lift has built a program with more than 6,000 veterans and 717 caregivers, with 8,500 grants awarded $6.2+ million raised.
Grant Recipient
Never Alone Summit
Never Alone Summit – the JWB Foundation partnered with the Never Alone Initiative of The Chopra Foundation and CG Creative Studios to produce a three-day, global livestream to support mental health and well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The summit was Hosted by JWB Executive Director Cassandra Vieten; Chopra Foundation CEO Poonahca Machaiah; actor and mental health advocate Gabriella Wright; and guest host Zak Williams. As the lockdowns and isolation continued into May, more than 105 speakers from the mental health and wellness communities along with brain and behavior experts, spiritual leaders, performing artists and others brought straight talk, inspiration, and mind-body practices directly into people’s living rooms. Among featured guests were Russell Brand, Deepak Chopra, Mariel Hemingay, NFL great Ray Lewis, Congressman Patrick Kennedy, and rapper Jeezy. The entire summit is available on demand [https://neveralonesummit.live]
More than 120,000 people from over 50 countries have viewed into the 20+ hours of livestreamed content. Partnerships among organizations have sprung from the Summit, and the content continues to reach thousands each month.
Grant Recipient
Move Your Mental Health
For the 10 days from October 1st – 10th, 2020, people around the world joined together to move our bodies for 10 minutes each day to support changing the way the world treats mental health. Move Your Mental Health culminated on World Mental Health Day!
Now you can join in for your own 10 days of movement, with these ten minutes videos created exclusively for 10-10-20 MYMH! Just choose your favorite videos, move for ten minutes, share with friends and you’ve done it! 2020 | 2021
Grant Recipient
Arundel Lodge
The JWB Foundation awarded a grant to Arundel Lodge, a not-for-profit, community mental health center in Edgewater, Maryland, to build and equip a fitness center to boost mental health and wellness of patients.
The installation has given many patients the opportunity to use the fitness center on a regular basis, one of whom says exercise has helped her schizophrenia tremendously.The Arundel Lodge strives to improve the lives of children, adults and families affected by mental health and substance use disorders. The State of Maryland designated Arundel Lodge as a Center for Excellence in Recovery in 2011. And in 2014 it was awarded the highest level of accreditation by CARF International.
Collaboration
We serve as a collaborative hub for an array of partners to advance a roadmap for an integrated approach to mental health care
Grant Recipient
Mental Health Leaders Roundtable
The Mental Health Leaders Roundtable shares resources, forms an alliance of mental health organization leaders and supports members – particularly those who are focused on expanding approaches to mental health to include more movement, nutrition and mind-body practices.
The Roundtable has set a goal of creating a roadmap to make mental health prevention and care more complete and holistic. Members have included representatives of the Michael Phelps Foundation, Inseparable, Nexus, Same Here, Move Happy, the Greater Good Center at UC Berkeley, Mindful Philanthropy, Digital Wellness, NAMI and others. Be in touch at info@johnwbrickfoundation.org to learn about becoming a member of the Roundtable.
Together we can do this. As a hub for mental health leaders and organizations, the JWB Foundation works to magnify the impact of each organization, accelerating new approaches to promoting mental health.
Grant Recipient
Global Wellness Institute
The JWB Foundation supported the Global Wellness Institute in creating a groundbreaking report on the intersection of the wellness industry and mental health.
The report on mental wellness will become part of a widely known series of white papers and research reports that are a go-to source for trusted information, garnering worldwide media attention. This new report will help to guide the next steps in the $4.5 trillion wellness industry as it empowers society to meet the growing need to support mental and emotional resilience. The Global Wellness Institute, host of the world-class annual Global Wellness Summit, is a nonprofit organization with a mission to empower wellness worldwide by educating public and private sectors about preventative health and wellness.
