Zine & Be Seen: Mental Health as a Public Health Issue

The Office of Access, Culture, and Community (OACC) is launching a creative series in the 25-26 academic year called Zine and Be Seen. Zine and Be Seen will be a monthly workshop series that uses zine-making to explore public health issues such as mental health, disability and access, immigration, and maternal health all through a health equity lens. These hands-on sessions are designed to be inclusive, low-pressure, and joyful spaces where participants can reflect, express, and connect through public health focused creative storytelling. Mental health is public health — yet often remains stigmatized, invisible, or siloed from broader conversations about wellbeing. In this creative zine-making session, we’ll use art and storytelling to explore mental health through a public health lens: What does it mean to care for ourselves and our communities? What stories, images, and truths are missing from dominant narratives around mental health? No zine experience is required — just curiosity. Together, we’ll create mini zines that reflect our perspectives, challenge stigma, and imagine more caring, collective approaches to mental health in public health practice.