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Healthy Maine Talks
Stories from people across Maine working to make their communities healthier and safer. Hosted by Maine Public Health Association.
Logo design credit: Elias McEaneney
Photograph (in logo) credit: Don Donelson
Healthy Maine Talks
Maine Youth Thriving: Ensuring a Healthy Future for Maine's Kids
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To mark Mental Health Awareness Month, Matt sat down with Dr. Delvina Miremadi-Baldino, the new Executive Director of Maine Youth Thriving. Dr. Miremadi-Baldino is a psychologist who specializes in fostering resilience in both adults and children. In this episode of Healthy Maine Talks she shares the work MYT is doing to encourage positive environments, experiences and relationships for young people in Maine. Spoiler alert, we all have a role to play!
*This Healthy Maine Talks episode is supported by the New England Public Health Training Center*
Hey everybody, thanks for tuning in to this episode of Healthy Maine Talks. This is Matt Wellington, your host and also Associate Director of Maine Public Health Association. May is Mental Health Awareness Month. And so for this episode of the podcast, I sat down with someone who knows quite a bit about it, Dr. Delvina Miramati Baldino. Dr. Miramati Baldino is the new executive director of Maine Youth Thriving, an organization that dedicates itself to creating positive environments and experiences for kids across Maine so that all young people have a chance to grow up and thrive in our state. And it was just such a breath of fresh air talking to Delvina about the work that they're doing and how they are really uh helping to make sure the rubber meets the road when we talk about how we can make sure young people feel like they matter in our state. So please uh tune in and I hope you enjoy the interview. I certainly took a lot away from it. Uh, number one being the fact that we have to be intentional about our work to build social connection and that we all have a role to play uh in building our communities up here in Maine. So thanks everybody. Hey everybody, thanks for tuning in to this episode of Healthy Maine Talks. This is your host, Matt Wellington, and as I said in my introduction, I am here with Dr. Delvina Miramati Baldino, the executive director of Maine Youth Thriving. Delvina, is it okay if I call you Delvina?
SPEAKER_01Yes, please do.
SPEAKER_00Um, Delvina, thanks for jumping on. I'm excited to chat with you. I know you and I had a conversation, I don't even know when that was. Time has just ceased to exist for me in this day and age. Um, but I was really taken by your mission. Youth mental health is you know continually top of mind for me, and um just excited for you to share what you're doing. So before we dig into Maine New Thriving, can you just share some of your background with our listeners?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, thank you so much. Well, thank you for having me, and I'm excited to share about the good work that's happening here. Um, yeah, so on a personal note, you know, I was kind of a youth or an adolescent who struggled myself with anxiety and depression, and um and so became really interested in that field and found myself working in suicide prevention in Boston at Children's Hospital. And that's where I began to really understand resilience. Um, you know, how do we prevent some of these really challenging um, you know, struggles that youth are facing? And and the prevention piece of that is really providing them more skills and strategies and opportunities and supports. And so that's how I found my way to kind of this work of um prevention and then uh did some work in other, you know, capacities of developing innovative tools and resources and really focused my dissertation work on uh college student resilience, knowing that the suicide rate goes to the second leading cause of death. So there's kind of a jump there for um that age range, and wanting to really think about what we can do in this isolated time frame when there's big transitions and developmentally a lot of expectations to really support uh youth in their mental health and help them be successful and thrive. And then, yeah, we um I have four young kids and we moved back to Maine. I'm originally from Maine and happy to be raising our kids here. And so that's how I made my way to what was then um the Maine Resilience Building Network or Murban, um, and have been with the organization since 2022.
SPEAKER_00Very good call on the name change. I find Maine U Thriving to be much easier, compelling to say, uh, and I think clearly, you know, demonstrates the work you all do. Can you just clarify for me? So, what was your doctorate in? So what yeah, what's your field of study?
SPEAKER_01So I started and uh got a master's in um human development and psychology, but it was in Harvard's um department of their education, their school of education. And part of the reason was at the time I was doing suicide prevention at the hospital, but we were out in community and most of the work we were doing was through the education system because it is a place where parents are connected, educators are you know in contact with youth, and you kind of have this space where for me it was really a passion for well, if we have this place where all youth are, how can we, you know, integrate more resilience strategies into the school systems and the way in which people are communicating so that youth are getting those tools and strategies? And so then I went on to do my um doctoral work in educational leadership, but really focused on uh resilience in education. And again, like thinking about educator training and um the schools in general, right? The whole education system, how can we shift that to incorporate more of the, you know, the supports and strategies youth need so they can thrive.
SPEAKER_00Um and you mentioned the college students earlier, and we're seeing a lot of substance use issues among college students. So that 18, generally like that 18 to 25 year old range, uh, is pretty concerning right now when we look at the substance use numbers. And it makes total sense that there needs to be more work done there because I remember it wasn't that long ago that I was in college, and even though legally I was an adult, emotionally I did not feel that way, you know. So um we need to give those folks the tools to, as you said, be resilient uh and and thrive. So let's jump to Maine New Thriving now. Can you share some background on the organization? How long has it been around? I know we mentioned the name change already, but yeah, what is the organization all about and what are you trying to accomplish?
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm. Yeah, the organization has a really rich history that we're really proud of, the story of kind of how we started, where we've come from, and now where we are. Um, so we started in 2012 as a volunteer network, which is hence the name, the main resilience building network. Um, and really it was this group of volunteers who came together on a regular basis in person, like 30 people who just wanted to do good things in the state and particularly bring ACEs trainings and information. So it was kind of like ACEs 101 to, you know, the state of Maine, knowing we have um as a state really high rates of adverse, when I say ACEs, adverse childhood experiences. So um in that work in 2019 is when there was a little bit of seed money that came in, and um the idea was to become a nonprofit using that. And one of the volunteers, Keeny Anna Tinkum, who was the previous ED, kind of stepped into that role and brought the organization through for about uh four and a half years when I stepped in and um mid-last May, May 1st. So that's kind of the history. Um, and so the evolution of kind of where we were and where we are now, I don't know if it's helpful now to just kind of share the mission and yeah, please do. Yeah, so again, we were kind of focused on ACEs and resilience. And so um in 2019, as part of us becoming a nonprofit, that actually was also when the very first positive childhood experiences study was published. Um and so that kind of information started in finding its way into our work of us really wanting to bring in more of the positive. Um, again, sometimes we learn about ACEs and it feels really hopeless. And we wanted to, you know, bring more of that hope and resilience into the work. And then um my training in, as I talked about, kind of in resilience, and I didn't mention I also am a positive psychology practitioner, so I have a certification in positive psychology, and that's kind of my um where I bring on all the research around the science of the positive. And so when I joined the organization, we kind of took all of this research around the science of the positive to integrate it into our work. And so, as part of our now main new thriving and the shift in our mission, which is to support main communities by promoting, you know, research-informed, resilient strategies and really foster these positive relationships, experiences, and environments. And so those kind of three core pieces of our mission are really embedded and integrated into everything we do, um, ultimately, as I mentioned, just ensuring kind of that really helping communities pave that pathway so that youth can flourish.
SPEAKER_00Um and is it so I I was taking a look at your website before our conversation and I saw there's a guide, a community action guide. Um, I haven't looked at the guide yet, so I'd definitely curious to hear more about it. But is it specific to each community that you work with? So how does the how does it function? Like, do you go into a community and say, all right, we're gonna come up with a plan to increase positive experiences for young people in this particular town and it's tailored to them, or is it more of a here are the general principles? Any town can you know pick and choose these, modify them as needed, and do that work. How does it work?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's such a good question. And one of the hardest things I think for people to understand about our organization. So that's why I love that question so much of, you know, what does it look like in practice? That you know, what we're talking about. Um, and so we have kind of three main goals as an organization that we're working towards. One is to engage and empower um youth voices, so elevating youth voice, um, building capacity of caring adults. So we know if the caregivers, the adults in their life aren't whole and healthy and regulated, they can't provide that pathway for youth to be the same way. And then um really thinking about that convening, like at a grassroots level. How do we kind of create this movement or momentum for changing these systems so that youth can thrive? So, given that our work uh kind of comes at us from many different places and levels. We have some projects internally that we're creating to help then put out into the world. The, you know, the as you saw, the guide is one of them. We're doing a PSA um series that we're launching uh next month for Mental Health Awareness Month that will be a really exciting project. Again, just elevating youth voice and trying to help promote these positive strength-based approaches. We also have people coming to us, so it could be a school, an organization that they want either training or technical assistance, professional development. And in that case, a lot of times it is that that kind of building capacity of caring adults. So, how do we um bring this work to the caring adults, either in you know, training for around positive childhood experiences and ACEs and the science of the positive? Sometimes it's a retreat style where they actually are depleted and burnt out and they need some support themselves. And so we're doing work around helping them regulate and compassion fatigue. Um, and then at the community level, again, it we do have collaborations with communities, for example, Franklin County, where over the last three years we've worked really intentionally with them around youth mattering and elevating that mission and message and integrating that into their community work.
SPEAKER_00That's very cool. Can you tell me more about that? What has it looked like in Franklin County over the last few years?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, um, it's evolved and we're really hopeful we have this final third year that we're hoping to get funding on to kind of close the loop and then maybe replicate it in other communities. But it really began with community conversations around youth mattering. Again, just building that awareness, getting on the same page, looking at the data. Um, so when we look at the data from the main integrated youth health survey, we know that around 50% of high schoolers feel like they matter in their communities. So that's not nearly enough. Um and in Franklin County, their rates are around 47%, I believe. Um, off the top of my head, it could be 46%, but below the average, right? So when we're looking at that, how do we make community members aware of this? That they play a role in whether or not, you know, they're the neighbor, the bus driver, the librarian, the community, you know, um the coffee shop worker, that when youth come through the door or when they see youth in their community, they're the adults that either help them feel like they matter, meaning being seen, heard, and valued, or not. And so part of that work is really just coming together as a community. So we held multiple community conversations, we gathered community in in certain events. It's a partnership also with HCCA, the Healthy Communities Coalition of or HCC.
SPEAKER_00I know, yeah, yeah, yeah. Healthy uh one of the healthy communities groups. They all have slightly different names, but I know what you're talking about. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Um, and so through that, they have events and we've helped to train their staff to consider positive childhood experiences and mattering. And so, in the work that they continue to do, um that's happening. And then in this third year, we have a really exciting project happening right now. Um, so part of Franklin County, we were working in Rangely and Farmington, and now we're working with an existing coalition in Jay and Livermore, and they have a student um committee as part of their coalition. And that student committee is going to be doing a PhotoVoice project with us. Um, so PhotoVoice, I don't know if you've heard about it, but it's a participatory qualitative research project. And so youth come together, they decide on kind of the prompts they want to investigate. So for this particular group, it's what helps me feel like I matter in my community, what are barriers in my community to feeling like I matter? And then they go out in community and they take photos of these things. Um, so it could be a park bench or you know, something that inspires them to either feel like they matter or as a barrier. They connect a story to it that kind of explain. And then we do a huge, we use that as data and we do a huge display and we um kind of highlight those photos and stories. And again, when we're thinking about elevating youth voice, that then becomes this data that the community itself can use to say, hey, look, this is really helping kids feel like they matter in our community. Let's do more of that. Or this is a barrier that actually is something very feasible we could put a little intention into and shift that so that it no longer is a barrier to youth mattering. So that's a project we hope to replicate in the future in other communities once we can make that happen this year.
SPEAKER_00That's super cool. Thank you for sharing the details. I like to hear where the rubber meets the road on this kind of concept because I've I've spoken so much about the idea and I've mentioned the stat you shared on youth mattering so many times. And it's just so nice to hear when some is someone's actually putting a plan into practice. Um, can you say a little bit more about why it matters for youth to matter, like what that's an indication of moving forward? Because I sometimes say that statistic and feel like I'm I need to provide more context to people for them to, you know, it's not just like a a good thing for kids to feel like they matter, it actually is an indicator of things. So can you share more on that?
SPEAKER_01Right. So we know youth mattering is important for a variety of reasons. One, if we just kind of think just holistically about, you know, the sense of mattering, um, feeling seen, feeling heard, and feeling valued, and how that resonates with just your identity, who you are, how that carries through in transitions in your life, right? So we know it's a big protective factor because if you have that sense of mattering, even if you lose, for example, the transition from high school to college, you lose a lot of comfort, a lot of support systems. Basically, all the people who have, you know, been there for you, your home, your school, your community, um, and you're kind of dropped in this new strange place, right? We know if if you think about feeling seen, heard, and valued, if they're if they have that sense of mattering within them, they're gonna be more protected from things like depression, anxiety. Um, and the research shows us that when youth have a low sense of mattering, they are at higher risk for suicidal ideation, depression, and they tend to um kind of disengage or withdraw, which then interrupts their ability to build and deepen relationships, which becomes a lack of a protective factor. Um, but if they have that sense of mattering, right, we know then they are protected uh from that. And so we see that in all of the research as well.
SPEAKER_00And it connects to so many other parts of our work. As the Public Health Association, we just released a cancer prevention policy toolkit, and a big part of the policy solutions are around reducing alcohol and tobacco use. And so we led in the toolkit with the first thing you have to do is invest in communities and help kids feel like they matter, because if they do, they're gonna be less likely to turn to substance use in the first place. So, this is all, you know, totally in line with what I've been thinking about, what we're trying to put in motion through on PHA. And it's just great that you have the expertise, like the academic expertise to then put it into practice in a meaningful way. So, you know, I I wanted to. Oh, sorry, puppies jumping on me. She's really nippy, like not in a biting way, but like really just chewing, literally chewing on me. Can you get away from me for just a sec? She's so she's lucky she's so freaking cute. I will say that. Um okay, so uh what uh what comes next for Maine You Thriving? Like as you look at our state, uh you are a statewide organization. What's your end goal here? What's your vision for how you can move the state towards a more positive community-centered way of living? And I know that's a big question, but yeah, I just very I I think people need positivity, people need to be forward-looking these days. And so what's your vision for how we can make Maine a more community-centered place?
SPEAKER_01It was a really big question, but I I guess I would say um kind of having all of the pockets of the work that we're doing come to fruition and be accessible to everyone in the state. So when we think about the professional development work that we're doing as one organization, we can only do so much of that. Um so as part of uh trying to expand that, we're in the sec, we have a second cohort of our train the trainer model, where we're training um educators around positive childhood experiences. And the last cohort, we had two educators from each of the counties across the state. And now they are certified and are providing that training to those in their community and their schools. And we're doing that again. The next um round starts April 28th, the next cohort. So just thinking um really that's one example of what would, if that could continue, if you just think about the sustainability of this work being in every community, impacting every youth. Um, I'm dreaming big here. Um, but and then similarly, you know, the work with elevating youth voice, can how can we bring that message and that model into every community as well? Where it's not just, you know, uh caregivers and people who care who are, you know, doing the work for youth, but really bringing Their voice to the table and listening and making taking action based on what they're sharing is helpful and works for them.
SPEAKER_00No, that's great. And I there's a couple other things I can I can dig into from what you shared. So for elevating youth voices, I'm curious if you're seeing differences in young women versus young men and their sense of mattering and what that looks like. Are there differences that are coming up throughout your work and what are those? Um yeah, can you share more details on that?
SPEAKER_01Yes, we know that females um have in general a lower uh percentage or sense of mattering. Um and also looking at the LGBTQ plus community um and students of color, they tend to also have lower levels of mattering as well. And so if you just think about being seen, heard, and valued, right? And you think about societal structures and what's rewarded versus not, um, what's accepted, what feels safe and what is unsafe, um, I think you can, I don't know, intuitively kind of make it makes a lot of sense, right? Why these particular populations may have that lower sense of mattering.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I actually have the one of your fact sheets pulled up. It says only 35% of lesbian, gay, and bisexual students feel they matter to their community compared to 57% of their heterosexual peers. So a pretty significant difference there. Um, one of the things that I think is is probably key to you fulfilling your vision for the state is getting other people just bought into the idea of caring about young people who are not necessarily their own kids. So you said caring adults before was the terminology you used, and I imagine that is meant to apply to anyone, right? Not just parents or teachers, but like anybody in the community who's an adult that might be interacting with kids there. So how do you do that? Because I find I, you know, it's challenging. I live in a pretty tight-knit neighborhood. Tight-knit is in like densely populated houses very close together. And I really try to make a concerted effort. And people on the podcast might be tired of me talking about my own neighborhood as the case study, but I try to make a concerted effort to say hi to other people's kids and to know their names and to ask them about their day if I see them in the playground. Um, but that's not second nature to some people, especially in this day and age. People feel very isolated, they feel very distrustful and suspicious of other people, especially if it's folks that they don't often interact with. So, how do you do it? How do you help buy people into that idea that it's gonna take all of us to help the next generation of people in Maine grow up and thrive, right? So, how do you do it? What are your suggestions?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think to your point, we could talk about mattering and rattle off statistics about youth mattering. Um, and that will only move the needle so far. And so one of the things we really are focused on is living out our mission and helping use our mission as a way of changing some of the minds of those people. So, for example, if you think about positive experiences, relationships, and environments, if we can create intergenerational experiences, relationships, and environments, bringing people together. And so we see ourselves as conveners. Can we be in community across the state, creating opportunities for these intergenerational right moments? Um it will start to kind of thread that needle, I think, and make that bridge or kind of weave together this concept of yeah, really thinking about youth as uh human beings in our community. Um, you know, it's a challenge also because of the huge divide with technology and just how quickly that generation and things have happened in that generation and the way that they live their life is just so drastically different more than ever before, right? The the differences in generational, you know, the generational differences are really vast. And so I think a starting point is really just bringing them together to understand and connect with each other as human beings, not as you're a youth. So I have this idea, uh ideology about you and your technology and your phones and your this. And, you know, life was very different when I was here. And so I think about the world this way. Um, what we've seen in our work, in our conversations with youth, and um, you know, knowing what we know in our conversations with adults about mattering is there's actually not that much of a difference in what youth are saying they need and what adults want to be able to provide. Um it's just a matter of bringing them together to hear it from each other and then um moving forward from there.
SPEAKER_00So you're doing a lot of the like strategy and train the trainer model. How much do you all weigh in on infrastructure needs? Because part of it is infrastructure. If people don't have a place to go to meet other community members, they're not going to connect with one another. So, how much do you weigh in on the infrastructure needs for communities?
SPEAKER_01We would love to do more than we currently are able to. However, um, in particular when we think about like rural communities, when we're in those spaces, it's it comes up over and over again. The challenge of the school being the hub and really no other place for youth to gather or be. And then the added pressure that puts on this already under-resourced space. And so we don't have a solution for that challenge. We do uh really try to come together to create space to talk about it and maybe brainstorm. Um, you know, is there, for example, we've done work in Oxford Hills, and they have, you know, the youth there have shared very openly that really the school is where they go. And there's maybe an ice cream shop or another place, but um so if that's the case, you know, how do we use the school without relying on the teachers and you know, the staff? Um, how do we get maybe parents involved to utilize the space? But I'm sure you know, with you know, in public health in general, with all of the challenges that youth face, finding space to bring people together and have them kind of naturally in community come together can be really challenging.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, for me, a big uh shout out to the libraries of the world. You know, it's just been so cool. One of the things I'm so grateful about in Brunswick is the library, such a community space. And I know every library is a little different and resources are different, but I see that as a huge potential for growth is helping libraries turn into super vibrant community centers. I'll also say, like, we do a lot of policy work, and my call to action for policymakers is to just prioritize young people in their policymaking decisions. Oftentimes they have a lot of other things to think about as they're making a decision on whether to vote on a piece of legislation. And I would just encourage them to really put top of mind how will this affect Maine's young people. Um, and especially if it's young people asking for the legislation, like really take that into account. So I think we're just about out of time. I don't want to keep you too much longer, Delvina. So I'll just ask you if you can, you might have already shared something that you'd want to sum up again, or maybe a new idea for our listeners out here out out in the, not here, out in the world, um, who are thinking, yeah, I want to be part of this. I want to make my community better. I want to look out for kids. What can they do? How can they engage with me and you thriving? And then just generally, what would your advice for them be?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Um, so I think to leave folks with you know, a message that you know, youth mental health isn't just about treating mental illness, it's really about creating the conditions where young people can, you know, have healthy relationships, have these positive experiences, and be an environment with one another that then allow them to be healthy. Um, and that ultimately that's ultimately that starts with all of us as individuals showing up and connecting with youth. Um, we know that connection is healing. Um and so we all have a role to play. And so I would just encourage everyone to keep that front of mind and be really intentional, as you mentioned, Matt, like in your community when you're when you see youth, just really listen and provide that, you know, um positive adult um person for them. And then you know, we're doing this work across the state. We're really trying to help communities and become stronger and uh more youth-centered. And so if anything that I've shared today you know resonates with you or is something that you'd be interested in learning more about, um, we um actually are launching our new website at the end of May. Um, but we have currently have our current website, but please, you know, come um to our website and I invite you to become a member. We have a membership that really brings you into our community and gives you a lot of free resources and um discounts on events and things like that that we host. We also are um always out in community doing trainings, workshops. Any way we can support um you as a whether you're a caregiver, an educator, you know, someone who works with youth or just someone in your community who is more interested in in showing up in intentional ways that will have a positive impact on youth. Um, yeah, reach out.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I think the takeaway for me is the intentional part. So I I think folks sometimes forget when we talk about this, that this used to just kind of happen. I think like this used to be an organic part of our communities. People went to church and it just was easier to do this kind of connection work. But now in the world we're living in, we have to be intentional about it. And that's what I think the work you're doing is all about. So thank you, Delvina, for your work and for uh your team's work at Mainu Thriving. And this should be published in May. So it'll be mental health awareness month, if I'm not mistaken. So lots of uh information, I'm sure, will be shared about that too. So yeah, thanks for joining us. I appreciate it.
SPEAKER_01Thank you so much for having us.
SPEAKER_00Awesome.