Center for Justice and Mental Well-Being

The Center for Justice and Mental Well-Being is a focused extension of the Nova Institute for Health’s longstanding commitment to mental health and human flourishing. With a heart-centered approach, the Center explores the wide-ranging, multidisciplinary factors that shape justice—broadly defined—and seeks to expand opportunities for all people to thrive across the life course.

Guided by the World Health Organization’s affirmation that “there is no health without mental health,” the Center understands justice and flourishing as deeply interconnected. It emphasizes innovative, equity-oriented pathways to optimize well-being—not only treating illness, but cultivating the conditions in which individuals, communities, and societies can truly flourish.

The Center embraces whole-person health approaches that transcend the limits of conventional medicine and pharmaceutical paradigms, which often focus narrowly on disease. Instead, we prioritize an integrative framework that attends to the emotional, physical, social, and spiritual dimensions of well-being—placing emphasis on prevention, resilience, and the creation of environments that nurture healing and growth.

Through the development and dissemination of evidence-based success stories and applied research, the Center works to strengthen support for policies, programs, and funding streams—locally, nationally, and globally—that can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives.

By integrating contemplative practice, spirituality, character strengths research, and integrative health, the Center champions a transformative vision of well-being—even in carceral and institutional settings often defined by suffering, stigma, and despair. Our work spans the biological, behavioral, and social dimensions of mental health, with a strong commitment to transdisciplinary approaches that build resilience and promote justice as a foundation for flourishing.

The multifaceted, systemic nature of mental well-being demands creative, interdisciplinary solutions. By convening leaders, advocates, and innovators on the forefront of mental health and emotional well-being in order to share their work with others, we will illuminate promising new interventions and potential pathways for treating depression and PTSD. In advancing mental well-being as a commonly shared goal, we will also encourage more individuals to seek help if and when they desire it.

We will also catalyze the adoption of flourishing-centered approaches across justice systems, supported by evidence-based models, open-access toolkits, and policy engagement. Ultimately, the Center is designed to spark a wider cultural rethinking of justice—one rooted in healing, growth, and the enduring human capacity for transformation.

Fortified by a robust and dynamic community, with contributors bringing significant expertise in areas of mental health and justice, the Center examines diverse topics such as equitable mental health algorithms, carceral care and healthy reentry, youth and family wellbeing and justice, inclusion and drivers of inequity, community cohesion, policy, law/criminal justice, healing in clinical care, the arts, spirituality, and food equity. 

Activities include, but are not limited to 

• Encourage New Paradigms, Holistic Ideas, and Integrated Approaches: We inspire bold, transformative thinking that challenges outdated models and embraces innovative, cross-disciplinary solutions. By fostering “blue sky thinking,” we aim to reimagine mental health through expansive, boundary-breaking ideas that integrate emotional, physical, social, and spiritual dimensions. This approach seeks to shatter old paradigms, address root causes, and build systems that prioritize flourishing, resilience, and equity, creating a foundation for truly transformative and sustainable mental health practices, with a focus on prevention and holistic treatment.
  
• Convene and Connect: We are developing a community of diverse leaders, innovators, and advocates to explore successes, challenges, visions, and actions to promote mental well-being. This includes convening events to promote awareness of all aspects of this agenda and explore solutions, while opening up major communication pathways in the translation of justice and mental health research for policymakers and the public.
  
• Support Knowledge Development: We support researchers with Firestarter microgrants, with a focus on interdisciplinary projects, novel ideas, or creative approaches that might not attract traditional funding. We are particularly interested in approaches and ideas that redefine mental well-being.
  
• Reduce Stigmatisation: A specific focus of all our work is understanding and addressing the causes and consequences of the persistent stigma associated with justice involvement and mental health.
  
• Promote Awareness, Advocacy, and Engagement: We explore new ways to share knowledge and engage stakeholders and the wider community to inspire meaningful change. This includes disseminating information through academic channels, social and mainstream media, and sharing inspiring stories through our Storybank. By championing evidence-based success stories, we seek to promote collaboration and leverage funding, policies, and programs.