Healing Minds, Healing the Planet: How Adekunle Adeleke is Bridging Mental Health and Climate Action in Nigeria
- Vikrant Joshi
- 7 hours ago
- 3 min read
In the heart of Lagos, where flooding streets, roaring traffic, and thick pollution are part of daily life, a quiet revolution is taking place, one that connects the resilience of blue-collar workers with the fight for environmental sustainability. Leading this charge is Adekunle Adeleke, a Nigerian pharmacist, public health scholar, and mental health advocate who is redefining what holistic well-being looks like in the face of climate adversity.
At Planet First Press, we are honored to spotlight Adeleke, a changemaker whose work exemplifies the power of integrated solutions. His initiative, Mental Health in Transit, is more than a campaign; it’s a movement born out of compassion, science, and lived experience.
Where Compassion Meets Climate Reality
Adeleke’s journey began not in a lab or government office, but inside a city bus. During an internship at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Lagos, he met a bus driver who shared the immense stress he faced, from endless traffic to the psychological toll of choking air pollution and recurrent floods. For most, it might have been a fleeting conversation. But for Adeleke, it was a turning point.
That moment sparked the birth of Mental Health in Transit, a bold initiative dedicated to supporting the mental well-being of Nigeria’s often-overlooked blue-collar workers, bus drivers, traders, dispatch riders, who silently bear the brunt of urban chaos and environmental neglect.
While advancing his academic training with an MSc in Public Health, Adeleke deepened his focus by studying environmental health. The knowledge gained affirmed what he had intuitively understood: climate stress is mental stress. Pollution, rising heat, and flooding are not just environmental crises, they’re catalysts for anxiety, depression, and burnout, particularly in vulnerable working populations.
Mental Health in Transit: A Blueprint for Integrated Change
At its core, Mental Health in Transit aims to democratize mental health care for underserved communities. The project offers:
Free counseling and psychosocial support
Educational workshops on stress management and emotional resilience
Outreach programs tailored to the unique environments and schedules of blue-collar workers
Climate-resilience awareness, teaching communities how environmental conditions affect mental well-being
This is no ordinary wellness initiative. It’s a holistic intervention rooted in public health, grassroots outreach, and sustainability. Adeleke’s approach acknowledges a crucial truth: we cannot achieve climate justice without mental health equity.
Accolades That Speak to Impact
Adeleke’s trailblazing work has not gone unnoticed. His list of accolades underscores his commitment to healthcare innovation, sustainable development, and community-centered change:
Winner, Shalina Healthcare Young Talent Award, 2020
Fellow, MHF Mental Health Fellowship, 2021
Shortlisted, Pharmanews Young Pharmacist of the Year, 2022
Finalist, Mega WeCare Impactathon, 2023
Finalist, PAGIA Innovation Award, 2023
Winner, Emzor Pharmacist of the Year, 2024
Shortlisted, UPG Sustainability Leadership Class of 2025
Each milestone is not just a personal win, it’s a nod to a growing recognition that climate action must include the mental and emotional dimensions of public health.
A Vision for the Future
Adeleke’s professional goals echo his broader mission: to ensure that mental health support is accessible, adaptive, and aligned with the challenges posed by a changing planet. His background in pharmacy equips him with scientific precision, while his public health education gives him the systems-thinking necessary to scale impact.
As urban centers around the world face similar dual burdens, ecological breakdown and escalating mental health issues, Mental Health in Transit offers a replicable model. One that governments, NGOs, and healthcare systems should pay close attention to.
Why This Story Matters
At Planet First Press, we believe the changemakers who work at the intersection of disciplines are the ones reshaping the world. Adeleke’s story challenges the conventional silos of environmental work and healthcare. It reminds us that sustainability is not only about planting trees or reducing emissions, it’s also about caring for the human spirit in the midst of crisis.
In a time when global headlines are dominated by climate emergencies and mental health epidemics, Adeleke offers something powerful: a hopeful, human-centered response.
Join the Movement
Adekunle Adeleke is not waiting for change, he is creating it, bus stop by bus stop, one conversation at a time. His work calls on all of us, policymakers, activists, healthcare workers, and citizens, to think beyond the binary of environment vs. health. Because in the end, a thriving planet begins with thriving people.
Follow Mental Health in Transit, share this story, and help amplify the message that healing minds and healing the Earth are part of the same revolution.
