Over half of all UN staff work in field duty stations, some of which have “extraordinary stressors” that need to be faced every day.  

That’s from Fabrizio Hochschild, the UN Assistant Secretary-General for Strategic Coordination, who spent 30 years working around the world as a humanitarian with the Organization, and has battled with mental health issues himself. 

On 10 October, marking World Mental Health Day, the UN is nearing the first anniversary of its Workplace Mental Health Strategy, which Mr. Hochschild said is challenging the taboo of addressing mental health issues.  

In an interview with UN News’s Natalie Hutchison, he explained why the UN launched the initiative, to address concerns from Headquarters in New York, to the world’s conflict zones.