It is estimated that 15 million people in Bangladesh suffer from a variety of mental health illness. Damage occurs when we misunderstand mental illness — and its gravity. Nowadays, the tendency of committing suicide, violence, anger, etc. become severe and frequent among the young generation. The lack of knowledge is one of the major causes not to address this critical issue.
After losing a friend who committed suicide in 2016, Md. Labib Tazone Utshab and his friends formed Light to Life – a community organization aiming to address the importance of youth mental wellbeing and development. The vision of this organization is to disseminate the knowledge of mental well-being and support young people aged 15-29 years by spreading the message: “Your struggle is a part of our story” One of the important initiatives of Light to Life is that they have designed a project to deliver the MFA- Mental First Aid to universities of Bangladesh. Light to Life has currently 600+ members and 120+ active volunteers who are working dedicatedly to develop different projects on mental wellbeing to empower the young generation to enhance knowledge and thought building process.
Light to Life has represented Bangladesh in different platforms by spreading their unique and outstanding initiatives. Their work has been showcased with other international organizations in the renowned platform of Active Citizen Youth Leadership Program in the UK. Md. Labib Tazone Utshab, who is also a facilitator of Active Citizen Training program also shared his journey of Light to Life at the UK Parliament.
Light to Life has received Joy Bangla Youth award 2018 from Young Bangla – one of the biggest platforms of Bangladesh for its outstanding performance in community development. Young Bangla network appreciates their contribution to society to bring a positive change about life among young people.
