Middlesex University Mauritius is creating a space to foster dialogue, built on the many dimensions of personal wellbeing by bringing together voices from a range of backgrounds. The University, in collaboration with the Rotary Club of Helvetia Happiness, hosted a symposium on October 9 at its Flic-en-Flac campus, dedicated to wellbeing and themed “Beyond One Lens: Rethinking Wellbeing Across Cultures”.
Designed as an interdisciplinary and intercultural forum, the event brought together academics, psychologists, counsellors, healthcare professionals, researchers and practitioners to explore the diversity of approaches to wellbeing and mental health. The symposium was rooted in the belief that understandings of psychological wellbeing and emotional distress can be shaped by a range of factors, including philosophical and spiritual traditions, social environments, individual and collective experiences, and the professional context.
In his opening address, Head of the Wellbeing Service at Middlesex University Mauritius, Dr Mahensingh Deonaran urged participants to reflect on the understanding of wellbeing, prevailing approaches to mental health, and whether the assumptions underpinning assessment, diagnosis and intervention necessarily carry the same meaning across different cultural settings.
Dr. Deonaran encouraged the audience to extend the conversation beyond the symposium itself by encouraging deeper research, discussion and practical development in areas such as curriculum design, culturally responsive assessment, and the ways in which mental health support and treatment are understood and delivered.
Across three panels focusing respectively on Indian and Eastern perspectives, Far Eastern and African approaches, and Western perspectives, the symposium brought together professionals with complementary backgrounds and areas of expertise. The first panel featured psychologist and EMDR therapist Musarrat Seekdaur, whose work focuses on cultural competence in therapy within the Mauritius context.
While the Director of ISD Training Institution, Pradeep Kumar Singh Jagutpal, has more than 45 years’ experience across stress management, personal development, and Raja Yoga meditation, the founder of Be A Roshan, Roshan Crasta, explores the link between wellbeing, nervous system regulation, spirituality, and consciousness.
Discussions also centered to the Eastern and African perspectives, where integrative wellbeing practitioner and clinical hypnotherapist Priyanka Bundhoo made a presentation, offering a blend of trauma-informed psychological tools with practices such as mindfulness, meditation, Yoga Nidra and Qi Gong. Panels also included African perspectives by Professor Lamin Sidibeh, Professor of Psychology in Gambia, Dr Ivan Munashe Katsere, a research psychologist and lecturer in social psychology whose work focuses, among other areas, on migration, social dynamics and inequalities in Africa, along with a panel discussion on Western perspectives that brought together professionals from psychology, healthcare and counselling. Speakers also included youth and workplace wellbeing expert Ishmeet Kaur and researcher and PhD candidate in counselling psychology and psychotherapy, Britney Soll.
For Provost and Director of Middlesex University Mauritius, Professor Mari Jansen Van Rensburg, “A holistic approach to wellbeing recognises that our cultural traditions, lived experiences and social contexts shape how we understand and support wellbeing. By valuing diverse perspectives and creating inclusive spaces for meaningful conversations with experts on the issues that matter, we can deepen understanding, challenge assumptions and advance equality and inclusion for all.”.
The event lent an invaluable opportunity to connect with experts and immerse themselves in the diverse schools of thought shaping the future of psychology, which aligns with the academic offering at Middlesex University Mauritius, which includes the BSc (Hons) Psychology and BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling Skills.
