Our Commitment to the Science and Practice of Wellbeing

March 7, 2025

On a day when thousands here in Madison and across the country are standing up for science, we assure our supporters and the public that the Center for Healthy Minds will continue to conduct research and implement programs that reflect our vision of a kinder, wiser, and more compassionate nation and world.

In recent weeks, we have watched with concern as the ability to conduct science has come under attack through proposed drastic reductions in public funding for scientific research and the removal of government and scientific data from public databases. These actions fundamentally threaten our ability to understand our world, protect public health, prepare for environmental and climate disasters, and support all communities, both locally and globally.

Scientific research reveals every human being has the innate capacity to flourish and our data show that we can all learn to nurture the skills of flourishing. We also know that social factors can both strengthen and weaken the core pillars of wellbeing. Poverty, inequality, discrimination, polarization, and climate change undermine our individual and collective wellbeing and have contributed to devastating declines in public mental health.

Our Center takes the strong and unabashed stance that we must work – through science – toward creating the causes and conditions that relieve suffering and nourish both individual and collective wellbeing. Guided by scientific evidence, we will work to promote compassion, resilience, and wellbeing for everyone. This is our moral obligation.