MAY 2025 NEWSLETTER
SOURISH CHOUDHURY | Published on 6/16/2025
OPEN MEETINGS
Connect with members globally during the monthly Open Meeting from 9 AM until 10 AM (New York time). Enter Zoom meeting 834 0892 3476 and Passcode 394366 or Click Here . The Open Meeting occurs on the second Saturday each month except June, when we meet in person at the Rotary International Convention !
MAGIC ALL AROUND IN CALGARY
Are you attending the Rotary International Convention in Calgary this year? We would love to meet you. RAGMHI has a wide range of meetings and presentations in Calgary.
REGISTRATION FOR ANNUAL MEETING IN CALGARY
Please Register for the RAGMHI annual meeting in Calgary using the following link :
https://forms.gle/6RKhxiBeo8cZ3Umu9
VOLUNTEER TO HELP IN THE RAGMHI BOOTH
We will be at Booth #259 in the House of Friendship. We invite you to volunteer to spend some time in the Booth. It is a great way to meet other Rotarians with an interest in Behavioral and Mental Health. If you are able to help, please use this form: https://forms.gle/ycn3EmuxphmKQLZe6
ATTEND A SESSION IN THE DISEASE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT HUB
RAGMHI has a comprehensive program of sessions in the Hub, right next to our Booth #259 in the House of Friendship. You will be able to find the sessions in your Rotary Events app, and also here, on our website page on all things RAGMHI in Calgary.
KNOW YOUR CHAIR, RITA AGGARWAL ( JULY 2025 – JUNE 2027)
Rita is a senior Consultant Psychologist at Nagpur City, Maharashtra, India, in private practice, since 1992.
Pioneering Psychological thought and practice
She established the first Psychological Clinic named ‘Manodaya’ and pioneered the thought and practice of Psychology in Central India when it was an unknown profession. Having an M.Phil in Clinical Psychology from Bombay University and a gold medal in both M.A and B.A Hons, Psychology, from Ranchi University, she was interested in applying psychology to help people.
From a young age her strong values were logical thinking, truth, justice, empathy, compassion. She valued self-autonomy, self-discipline and ownership of behavior and choices. Being a straight -talker she believed that ‘I will preach only what I can practice’! She roughed out some years in social work initiatives at grass-root levels in rural India for experience, leaving the comforts of her life. She gained insights into the powerful dynamics of the socio-economic-political complexities of rural society and how it determines the strengths and threats to the mental health of people. She later worked on research projects, on ‘Women Prisoners’, ‘Domestic Violence’; Coordinated a Centre on ‘De-addiction Counselling and Rehabilitation’ and Coordinated Child Adoption Agencies.
She pens a regular weekly column, named ‘Emotions’ in Central India’s leading daily English newspaper ‘The Hitavada’ from 1994, which is still running in its 31st year! As a psychological counseling column which answers personal psychological queries of the general audience is extremely popular even today, which is evident
from its continuity.
A Behavioral Trainer, Speaker and mentor she has lectured on mental health in colleges, schools, Institutes, industries and forums. She spoke at TEDx at BITS Pilani, in 2016. Her signature workshops on “Personality Development” for kids and college students conducted in her own Center were in huge demand for 26 years till she discontinued them in the year 2020 during Covid.
Her Rotary Journey
Invited to join the Rotary Club of Nagpur, District 3030, in the year 2000, she initiated several projects on mental health. She worked on various positions in her Club and the District and won recognition and awards. During the Covid pandemic in 2020, she formed a Rotary District Committee on Mental Health which chartered into a District Chapter with the Rotary Action Group on Mental Health Initiatives on April 2021. At the same time, a monthly newsletter Mind Matters, was started. We all know she is a Co-Founder of RAGMHI that was chartered in the year 2016. Since then she has been a Director on the Board. She says happily that ‘In the last nine years of its existence it has grown into an influential Action Group with a strong membership base, global grants projects and a wonderful dedicated Board of Directors’. With the help of the outgoing Chair Bob Anthony, she ran a Global Grant project named “Wellness in a Box -Peer Leadership Development Program”, based on the RAGMHI toolkit with the same name. The project ran for 4 years from 2021 to 2025 in 5 schools of Nagpur, benefitting thousands of children and parents and creating an impact. Rita says ‘I love Rotary’s internationality. I love my Action Group for it has given me friends worldwide and inspirational role-models to look up to. Rotary’s vision and values of ‘service above self’ resonates well with mine’.
International Recognition
For her project ‘Wellness in a Box’, she was honored with the two highest awards in Rotary International - Service above Self and the People of Action Champions of Impact. The awards were given at the Rotary International Convention at Singapore in May 2024 at the hands of the Rotary International President Gordon R McInally at a gala dinner. Rita has a vision, a mission and a passion- what more can you aspire for!!
Good wishes to you Rita!
DISTRICT SEMINAR ON MENTAL HEALTH
-- Dr. Pallavi Maji, Chair DAGMHI Chapter 3240
Rotary Clubs of Rotary International District 3240 and DAGMHI chapter 3240 successfully organized a District Seminar on Mental Health in Agartala with the theme “Healthy Mind – Healthy Body – Healthy Life.” The program was conducted in two parts. The first session in the morning was held at Bhavans’ Tripura Vidyamandir School Auditorium with 200 plus students . It was an interactive session where students participated enthusiastically. Students were asked to share their concerns anonymously, which were later addressed by experts. The attempts to identify the problems of the students at large is not possible to solve in an single attempt and considering the fact, it has been decided that RC Agartala will develop a process to address the issues related to the mental health of the students under the guidance of DAGMHI chapter 3240 . The resource persons included Rtn. Sourish Choudhury (International Public Image Director, RAGMHI), Rtn. Dr. Pallavi Maji (Chair, DAGMHI 3240), and Dr. Priyajyoti Chakma (Associate Professor, Agartala Government Medical College). Students were greatly benefitted from the session, and it was decided that students can continue to submit their issues, which will be forwarded by the Rotary Club of Agartala to the DAGMHI Chapter 3240 for appropriate guidance and support.
The second part of the program took place at Hotel Sonar Tori, Agartala, and was graced by Hon’ble Mayor and MLA, Shri Dipak Majumder as Chief Guest, Rtn. Dr. Kameswar Singh Elangbam (DGE 2025–26) as Guest of Honor. Special guest was Rtn Dr. Achinta Bhattacharjee (Assistant Governor, Zone 16). The event was also attended by the President RC Agartala Rotarian Hari Saha, Secretary Dr. Bidhan Goswami, Charter President Rtn.Anil Chandra Debnath, and Charter President of Rotary Club of Teliamura, Rtn. Mihir Debnath. Rotarians from Kolkata, Bardhaman, Karimganj, Silchar, Shillong and different parts of Tripura participated in the event. A musical therapy session conducted by Arpan added a special touch to the evening. The Rotary Clubs of Agartala reaffirmed its commitment to ongoing mental health support in collaboration with DAGMHI Chapter 3240.
HOW TO LIVE TO BE 100
- Larry Kubiak, PhD, licensed psychologist, Director RAGMHI
The average life expectancy of an American-born today is 78 years. However, over 70,000 Americans have reached their 100th birthday this year. What are they doing that others can emulate? The National Geographic sent a team around the world to identify those areas that have the longest living people to study them and their habits including those with the highest proportion of people who reach the age of 100. The Danish twin study established that only 20% of how long someone lives is determined by their genes so there must be much more going on than that. The investigators identified five areas around the world that met the criteria for long agers. They circled these on a map in blue and therefore they became known as blue zones. For more information on their findings you can go to bluezones.com
The researchers found that there were nine lifestyle habits that identified the world’s healthiest and longest living people. These include the following:
1.Move naturally. While we know it is important to exercise these individuals didn’t necessarily join gyms or run marathons but instead lived in environments that constantly urged them to move without thinking about it. This included them growing gardens, doing their own yardwork and other things that oftentimes we try to avoid as much as possible.
2. Purpose. Having a reason for getting up in the morning and knowing your purpose in life has been determined to be worth seven years of extra life expectancy. For many this may include getting outside of ourselves and working to help others.
3. Downshift. Stress is an inevitable part of life. Certainly, even people in the blue zones experience stress which leads to chronic inflammation and is associated with every major age-related disease. Those who live the longest have regular routines to shed that stress that work for them very effectively.
4. The 80% rule. Those in Okinawa follow a Confucian mantra that before meals reminds them to stop eating when their stomachs are 80% full. The 20% gap between not being hungry and feeling full could be the difference between losing weight or gaining weight. Those in the blue zones eat their smallest meal in the late afternoon or early evening and they don’t eat anymore for the rest of the day.
5. Plant slant. Beans including fava, black, soy and lentils are the cornerstones of diets. Meat which usually involves pork is eaten on average only five times per month. Serving sizes are 3 to 4 ounces which is about the size of a deck of cards rather than the oversized portions that Americans typically eat.
6. Vine at five. People in most all of the zones drink alcohol moderately and regularly. They find that moderate drinkers often outlive nondrinkers. The trick is to drink 1 to 2 glasses usually wine per day with friends and/or with food. You cannot skip days and then add them altogether into one or two and get the same benefits.
7. Belong. All but five of the 263 centenarians they interviewed belong to some faith-based community. It did not matter what denomination this was. Their research indicated that those attending faith-based services four times per month will add 4 to 14 years of life expectancy.
8. Loved ones first. Successful centenarians put their families first. Oftentimes this means keeping aging parents and grandparents near or actually in the home. They commit to a life partner which can add up to three years of life expectancy and invest in their children with time and love. You never know when they may be helpful in caring for you when that time comes.
9. Right tribe. The world’s longest living people chose or are born into social circles that supported healthy behaviors. These would include friends or family members who are committed to each other for life. We know that all types of behaviors positive or negative including smoking, obesity, happiness and even loneliness are contagious. As a result, being in social networks with people who favor positive health behaviors will increase your longevity.
THE QUIET POWER OF COMPASSION
- Andrea Bhagwandeen, RAGMHI Member
A Catalyst for Mental Health and Societal Progress In an age of hyperconnectivity, social fragmentation, and mounting mental health crises, compassion often feels like a radical act. Yet it is precisely this quality—simple, human compassion—that holds the power to transform lives and reshape societies. Compassion is more than sympathy or fleeting pity; it is the active, deliberate practice of understanding the suffering of others and committing to alleviate it. When compassion becomes embedded in our responses
to mental health and our broader social systems, it lays the groundwork for healing, resilience, and sustainable progress.
At the individual level, compassion is a cornerstone of mental well-being. Mental health struggles are often exacerbated by isolation, shame, and misunderstanding. When individuals are met with compassion—whether by a friend, a healthcare professional, or a stranger—it reduces stigma and opens the door for help-seeking and recovery. Studies consistently show that compassionate interactions lower stress, reduce anxiety, and improve emotional regulation. Simply being heard and held in empathy can be a lifeline for someone experiencing depression or trauma.
But compassion must go beyond interpersonal kindness. In mental health policy and public discourse, it must shape how we structure services, educate communities, and allocate resources. A compassionate society does not criminalize distress, ignore poverty-induced trauma, or treat mental illness as a moral failing. Instead, it invests in accessible care, culturally sensitive approaches, and trauma-informed systems. In this sense, compassion becomes a tool of justice—recognizing that many mental health conditions are not merely clinical, but social and environmental in origin.
On a societal scale, compassion promotes cohesion and collective progress. It fuels civic engagement, volunteerism, and inclusive policymaking. Societies rooted in compassion tend to have lower rates of violence, stronger public trust, and more resilient economies. Why? Because compassion begets connection—and connection is the social glue that binds diverse communities. When people feel seen and valued, they are more likely to contribute positively to the collective good. In contrast, societies that devalue empathy often descend into polarization, inequality, and systemic breakdown.
Incorporating compassion into leadership, education, and innovation also fosters more ethical and humane institutions. It tempers profit with purpose, data with dignity, and ambition with accountability. Whether we are building AI systems, legislating health policy, or leading organizations, compassionate thinking ensures that human well-being remains the ultimate goal.
Moreover, compassion has a ripple effect. One act of kindness can influence countless others, creating a feedback loop of care and courage. In times of crisis—be it a personal loss, a natural disaster, or global uncertainty—it is compassion that moves people to rebuild, reimagine, and rise. Ultimately, compassion is not a soft ideal but a strategic imperative. For mental health and for the advancement of society, we must cultivate a culture where empathy is not the exception but the norm. Compassion, then, is not weakness—it is wisdom in action. It is how we thrive, together.