The Upwell Foundation was founded by a group of like-minded individuals who share a passion for mental-health, community development and social justice. These three areas lie at the very core of our Foundation and our aspirations. Founded at the height of COVID pandemic in 2021, we responded to what we psychologists witnessed within the mental health community. We saw mass grief and fear that went on to impact all areas of human development and functioning.

The long-term impact of people living in extreme uncertainty and fear highlighted a greater (long exiting) problem: stunted psychological growth that eventually leads to a range of difficulties. Across the life-span, human difficulty is observed in the form of learning problems in children, financial difficulty, marital problems, career dissatisfaction and the general inability for individuals to create lives that are fulfilling. 

Being located in a third world setting in South Africa, the ability of us psychologists to adequately respond to the psychological needs of those who needed it most was limited. Most people are never even able to access resources for support. This observation applies not only to South Africa but the wider global south and all vulnerable societies globally. These societies are best described as being a high-risk, low-resourced environment for mental health. This landscape is what inspired us to establish the Upwell Foundation and guide its mission.

With the principle of servant leadership and a sense of community at our core, we set out to design and undertake project with the long-term goal to support people to help themselves. Regardless of the root of their challenges, be it from poverty, lack of educational resources, war or political circumstances.

Our greatest wish is to work across different contexts with diverse peoples, beyond the bounds of race, culture, religion and genders. Our purpose is to respond to the support needs of as many vulnerable groups as our own resources allow and allow the extent of human suffering to serve as motivation to fuel our mission. The diversity in our founding team supports our diversity aspirations. We aim to grow our Foundation on the ideal of responding to human beings needs wherever we may be helpful.