Universal Business School Mumbai launches the Happy Campus Project

Inspired by the Stanford Forgiveness Projects, a series of workshops and research projects that investigate the effectiveness of Dr Frederic Luskin's forgiveness methods on a variety of populations, the Universal Business School Mumbai has launched the Universal Business School Happy Project. This is a step towards a happier life on campus.

 The following are the goals of the Universal Business School Happy Campus Project:

• Reducing factors that can be common barriers to student learning.
• Creating a happier environment on campus that drives the overall growth of students.
• Promoting holistic development in line with the UBS vision of "transforming lives".
• Improving students’ overall experience by maximising factors that ensure engagement.

 The Happy Campus Project-Workshops and Sessions

 "Let’s Talk Mental Health," an awareness workshop that is a part of the student onboarding program.

Planned Counselling Sessions: Every new student goes through one session with the campus counsellor, which will be an informal interaction with the view of understanding the student and how he/she functions.

Voluntary Wellbeing Counselling Sessions: These are self-initiated sessions scheduled for students who intend to seek therapy or do self-work.

 There is a lot of emphasis on "Student Community Engagement" itself, as evidenced by

• Group wellness coaching for students
• Students' support groups or group therapy sessions
• Events to promote student community building (bonfires, open mics, etc.)
• Weekly physical health challenges
• Group walks and treks on campus
• CollPoll: Self-Evaluation Wellbeing Survey
• Student Wellbeing weekly newsletter
• Life skills and holistic development classes on relevant and topical subjects

"We are inspired not just by India's rich heritage of holistic living, but also by the fact that the world's best universities, such as the Harvard College of General Education, offer courses like ‘The Science of Happiness’. Sharp decision making has a lot to do with your happiness, which in turn is ensured by good health, inspired living, and good sleep. We would like our students to know this from an early age," avers Tarun Anand, Chairman, Universal Business School.

The campus will now have its own "Happy Campus Project" room, where students can take a Happiness Break and spend time with themselves doing the following activities in silence:

• Colour mandala sheets
• Journal their thoughts
• Listen to music
• Read
• Do puzzles etc.

There is also a plan to conduct workshops on psychological first aid for students and faculty. Faculty. The Happy Campus Project sounds curiously like the hippocampus, the part of the brain that is involved in emotions, learning, and memory formation.