Buddy Up for men’s suicide prevention

Written by Centre for Suicide Prevention

Centre for Suicide Prevention is excited to announce a new men’s suicide prevention campaign: Buddy Up.

This campaign was created for men by men, encouraging them to have real conversations with their buddies and to support them if they’re struggling with thoughts of suicide.

We launched this campaign because men die by suicide 3 times more often than women – and suicide can be prevented. When people are equipped to have a conversation with someone they’re worried about, they can make a difference in that person’s life.

As part of Buddy Up, we released an infographic that provides a step-by-step approach to having a conversation with someone you’re worried about. We updated our toolkit on men’s suicide prevention, which provides more background information on why men die by suicide, what warning signs to look out for, and how we can prevent these suicides. In addition to these educational pieces, a public awareness campaign was launched, and, thanks to a donation from Pattison Outdoor, appeared in digital spaces around Calgary, including on billboards, at bus stops, and at C-train stations. 

Buddy Up was informed by an Advisory Committee and vetted by all-male focus groups, and was made possible by the generosity of Calgary Herald Christmas Fund, 100 Men Calgary, and Atom Graphics who together donated more than $80,000 towards this project.

We’re currently looking for people to Champion this campaign at their ‘setting’ of choice – their workplace, their sports team, their book club, or anywhere else they see fit. 

Want to get involved? Learn more? Please contact Akash Asif at akash@suicideinfo.ca or (403) 245-3900 ext. 242