» Everything you need to know about The Resilience ProjectThe Booktopian

From professional programs to bestselling books and hit podcasts, here’s everything you need to know about The Resilience Project and its founder, Hugh van Cuylenburg.

First things first: What is The Resilience Project?

The Resilience Project is a company that offers positive mental health programs to schools, businesses and sports clubs. These sessions are designed to build ‘resilience and happiness’, incorporating lessons on emotional literacy, connection and physical health.

Their mission? To teach positive mental health strategies to help people become happier, with a focus on gratitude, empathy and mindfulness. Sounds awesome, right?

To date, they’ve helped over a million Australians, in over 1,000 schools and over 500 workplaces. You can check out The Resilience Project website for more info.

Hugh van Cuylenburg

Who is Hugh van Cuylenburg?

Hugh van Cuylenburg is the Founding Director/Facilitator for The Resilience Project. He’s also a keynote speaker and teacher with over 17 years of experience.

Hugh was inspired to start The Resilience Project after he spent a few months volunteering as a teacher in northern India in 2008. In a village with no running water or electricity, Hugh could see that the people were still much happier than many of the young people he knew back in Australia. It was a lightbulb moment for him:

‘It was this experience, and subsequent post graduate studies, that led me to some pretty simple conclusions about the things that we need to be doing here in Australia if we want to be happier. I learnt from this village that practicing Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness leads us to a happier more fulfilling experience.‘

Since then, Hugh’s worked tirelessly to bring The Resilience Project into life, working with numerous schools and businesses, as well as several high-profile athletes like Dustin Martin. He also co-hosts a podcast called The Imperfects.

Sounds awesome! What is The Resilience Project book?

There’s actually two! Hugh van Cuylenburg has authored two books founded on the principles of The Resilience Project.

The first book, The Resilience Project, explains how we can all get the tools we need to live a happier and more fulfilling life.

The follow-up to that book is Let Go, which is something of a manual for dealing with our current troubled and uncertain times. We’re beset by anxiety, shame and fear, all exacerbated by our addiction to social media, and in this book Hugh sets out to show us that it’s possible to create authentic connections, cope better during challenging times and rediscover joy.

If you’re looking for a book to help you stick to your New Year resolutions, or you just want something to inspire you to live with more positivity and creativity, why not give these a try?

And there you have it: everything you need to know about the mental health phenomenon that’s sweeping the nation.

If you want to hear more about Hugh van Cuylenburg and The Resilience Project, you can listen to our chat with Hugh on our very own podcast, Tell Me What to Read, below!