Our Mission

Mental illness is both common and treatable, but every day stigma prevents those in our communities from seeking the help they need. It Gets Brighter invites everyone, including those who have lived with mental illness and those who have supported loved ones with a mental illness, to speak openly about their experiences and to reassure others that it can–and will–get brighter.

If you have experienced a mental health challenge, we hope that you will seize this opportunity to share what helps make it brighter for you. Or, simply express your solidarity with those struggling with their mental health, and share a message of hope and acceptance. We believe that expressing what’s happening in our heads is better than suppressing it, and that mental health challenges do not define us. Together we can prove that there is ability in our vulnerability.

Our Beginnings

Founded in 2014, by Dr Emma Lawrance and Dr Joshua Chauvin, who met while studying at Oxford University.

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Our Team 🖐

Dr Emma Lawrance

Chair of Trustees

After studies and work ranging from physics to a traveling science circus, Emma studied Clinical Neuroscience at the University of Oxford. She is now the Mental Health Innovations Fellow at Imperial College London and leads the Climate Cares programme to understand and respond to the interconnections between climate change and mental health.

She has experienced first-hand both how devastating mental illness can be, and also how the power of hope that comes with connections to others and their stories can indeed make things brighter. She believes we can change the conversation around mental illness to better the future for people experiencing mental health challenges and their loved ones. She is proud to be an Advisor for Batyr.

Dr Joshua Chuavin

Trustee

Dr. Joshua Chauvin is an entrepreneur and psychologist passionate about building innovative technologies, businesses, and non-profit initiatives globally to meet the challenges in mental health care. As VP Strategy & Head of Global Access for Koa Health, he is currently helping to lead a collaborative effort with Harvard Medical School to build EMPOWER, an open-access initiative committed to training up the world's mental health workforce digitally. He has previously worked as Partnerships Manager for Mindstrong Health and as a research consultant for the Canadian Mental Health Association. Josh completed a DPhil in Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford as both a Rhodes Scholar and a Canadian Centennial Scholar, is an Associate Fellow at the Evidence-Based Practice Unit, an Advisor to charities Jack.org and batyr, and an Honorary Senior Research Associate at UCL

Will Hill

Trustee

Will is a social entrepreneur interested in solving big problems with innovative and disruptive solutions.
He is a founder of "The School of Innovation", a start-up backed by some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs. Its mission is to challenge the status quo of higher education by establishing a radically new and innovative university in the UK, with a key focus on tackling the mental health challenges of students head-on.

Will is also the founder of University.co.uk, an editorial dedicated to discovering the future of higher education.

Prior to this, Will founded Charity Nest, an organisation that continues to help small and local charities gain access to finance.

Will is proud to be a Trustee of It Gets Brighter and is deeply committed to making change.

Stephanie Vasiliou

Trustee

Stephanie is the Head of Global Impact at batyr, a non-profit focussed on lived experience storytelling and peer-to peer-mental health programs for young people. As the third employee, Stephanie was central to growing the organisation, particularly its evidence-based programs, research and impact initiatives.

Stephanie has a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice with a concentration in Psychology, and a post-graduate certificate in Forensic Practice. With a passion for facilitating knowledge sharing globally to elevate the voices of young people and strengthen impact, Stephanie is Co-Chair of the Child & Youth Working Group for the Global Mental Health Action Network and member of the Global Anti-Stigma Alliance and NEXUS Global.

Aaliyah Simms-Grinter

Chief Volunteer

Aaliyah is a current Law student, public speaker and mental health champion who is focused on breaking down barriers to widening participation.

After spending her teenage years in CAHMS, Aaliyah feels no stigma disclosing her ongoing struggles with numerous conditions (OCD, ADHD, Depression, Anxiety, an ED, amongst others). Speaking about her lived experience is what enabled her success.

She has experience as a former Trustee as a Sabbatical Officer for her Student Union & has a track record of achievements she never dreamed she could achieve prior. Such as going on the Common Purpose Global Leadership Programme in Hong Kong, speaking at THE Campus Live 2022 on Mental Health, being a panellist for the 2022 Universitas 21 Symposium & a Leonard Cheshire Alumni. Aaliyah commited to growing the ItGetsBrighter Community.