Welcome to the Foundation. I've been asked to draft a text about it for its 20th anniversary... What a contradiction! While I've been aware of the Foundation's work in mental health as an attendee of scientific meetings organized over time, and a member of the Board of Trustees since last year, my journey within the institution is, however, brief and lacking in shared experiences. Consequently, this assignment weighs heavily on me; I'm not much of a fan of tributes and I'm struggling to think what I can say that is authentic. How can I make it sound not empty, and at the same time characterize a long journey in a few words, from a personal perspective of little time within the institution?.
Well, it turns out that the greatest lack becomes the best ally, because in pondering the reasons and motivations for this task entrusted to me, I find myself thinking that this is precisely one of the characteristics of the Foundation: the ability to embrace what is new, to be genuinely curious about recent social phenomena and their relationship with mental health; a history of openness to knowledge and social responsibility corroborated by the nature of the issues addressed in various meetings over these 20 years of history. I also understand that there is a desire to keep this project alive, a commitment to ensure it transcends individualities, endures over time, while trusting and involving the professionals who have recently joined, with a warm and stimulating welcome.
This distinctive character of the institution is equally reflected in the way it reflects, includes, and strives to keep thinking even when conditions are not the most suitable. The theme of the next congress, Digital Society and Mental Health, strikes me as a commitment to accompany social change through the exercise of thought despite the speed of the transformations sweeping over us. As a chosen topic it may not have been original, but it was necessary. Today it is no longer merely necessary; it is indispensable. And I notice the group's commitment to this undertaking despite the inconveniences of the times we are living in, the effort to adapt, and a certain pleasure in discovery. At the same time, I wonder what the development of this project—the organization of the congress on Digital Society and Mental Health—can achieve under the current circumstances, since it involves combining a commitment to rigor and creativity in analyzing the subject matter with the practical experience of all participants, who have become subjects of real-time experimentation.
In a context of global change, with transformations that will substantially affect our way of living, thinking, and feeling, I especially appreciate the good fortune of joining this internal renewal movement within the Foundation and becoming part of a cohesive human group driven by the desire to reflect and act upon the uncertain reality we are experiencing.
Soledad Bermann
Board Member Fccsm