The Minister of Health has reminded us during this Mental Health Awareness Week of the importance of regular physical activity — a half-hour per day — to boost physical and mental health. This is based on the body/mind connection; a reality not yet fully appreciated in Western medicine.

Any holistic approach that nurtures resilience in mental health includes:

• Regular physical activity

• Engaging regularly with nature

• Being self-aware regarding media consumption

• Enjoying the arts

My own passion for music recently led me to an impressive children’s trio from South Africa — Biko’s Manna. I’ll return to that wonderful experience later.

Many cultures, including ours, stigmatise those who have mental health challenges — stoking shame in those experiencing symptoms of imbalance. There have been continuing efforts locally and globally over several decades to address this stigma.

Family friend Michael Radford served as a psychiatrist in Bermuda for some time before retiring. He has shared aspects of the benefits of an integrated approach to health.

Recently, concrete steps have been taken towards a more progressive model, both institutionally and culturally. Over the past year, there is evidence of something of a renaissance in this regard, championed by the likes of the Bermuda Public Services Union, whose president, Armel Thomas, is demonstrating visionary leadership in promoting a transformative approach to mental health.

A renaissance would involve us collectively maintaining regular physical activity, enjoying nature and monitoring our media consumption, while benefiting from the arts in various ways.

Biko, Manna and Mfundo are three siblings whose heart-warming musical presentations — “covers” of old favourites produced out of their home — demonstrate the impact of culture.

Through YouTube over the past few years, these children have demonstrated significant artistry with great warmth and palpable joy. It is obvious that they have a supportive family who nurture their talents, but more importantly, their sense of being shines through brightly.

It is evident that their journey is nurturing resilience in theirs and their audiences’ mental health. Their artistry has been appreciated globally, with their cover of Stand By Me surpassing two million views.

This leads to another significant factor that has an impact on mental health — media.

We are living through some of the darkest of postwar times. We have had a year of genocide in Gaza carried live on social media, including the boastful impunity of perpetrators, and belatedly the spreading violence in the Middle East. Additionally, there is other significant violence in various parts of the world and political insanity on an unprecedented level, fostering extreme polarisation.

Rather than fostering a climate of reflective dialogue regarding the roots of the major conflicts with a view to arriving at a diplomatic resolution, we have the opposite. With the recent exception of France and Spain, the global elites are ignoring the vast majority of the human family — as reflected by results at the United Nations General Assembly.

In this climate, a proactive step towards safeguarding mental health would include careful reflection on the amount of media consumed.

Empathy is arguably the most important characteristic for a mentally healthy human being. Observing coverage of the unmentionable cruelty, such as 2,000lb bombs resulting in the deaths of thousands of children, is a substantial challenge to collective mental health.

This level of inhumanity is only possible through extreme racism, resulting in an absence of empathy. Once, while watching Biko’s Manna, it hit me that these three children from South Africa are emblematic of those considered as “other” by the global elites. However, their light during these dark times offers something more than hope.

The legacy of South Africa, generally accepted as a work-in-progress, has offered the world some guidance. In January, the Rainbow Nation stood up against global elites, charging the Israeli Government with genocide before the World Court. Initially standing alone, they have been joined by other nations and the sentiment of billions around the globe.

These three children from South Africa, while not addressing the matter explicitly, offer a beacon with their open hearts and open minds.

Biko, Manna and Mfundo are shining a light that inspires a depth of global connection — and mental health — reminding us that we are indeed one human family.

• Glenn Fubler represents Imagine Bermuda