Brent Pope spoke to RTÉ Lifestyle at Dublin's Pendulum Summit - watch it back above.
Although he may best be known for his roles as rugby player, coach, and TV commentator, as well as his many Irish TV appearances (The Den, The Afternoon Show, The Late Late Show), Brent Pope is becoming increasingly recognised for his work in mental health advocacy.
Having suffered through various mental health issues throughout his life, the New Zealand native established his own charity, Elephant in The Room, in 2022, in the hopes of raising awareness of mental health within professional organisations across Ireland and The UK.
"I wanted to come up with a concept, basically, addressing exactly what it is: the elephant in the room," Brent told RTÉ Lifestyle.
"I've been suffering with mental health issues all my life; since I was a young teenage boy - 13 or 14 years [of age] - through panic attacks, anxiety, through catastrophe anxiety, through depression, through suicidal* thoughts. I've run the gamut."
Pope hopes that by having an artistic elephant statue in plain sight, organisations will have a simple but effective way of publicly declaring their committed to supporting their employees’ wellbeing. Additionally, each elephant can be decorated in their own unique way to spark conversation around each company.
"By creating a vulnerability themselves, they create a vulnerability from other people," he explains. "That's the most important thing, and when I'm talking to parents or friends or whatever - just be more vulnerable yourself because then that welcomes your children talking to you in a more open way.
"The takeaway is to invest in your people," he added. "Invest in your people. Just by having a symbol of an elephant out there shows that you care at some level. I'm not asking everyone to run therapies or strategies or anything, I'm just saying, it often starts with that first conversation."
To find out more about Elephant in The Room and Brent Pope's work, watch the video back above.
*If you have been affected by issues raised in this story, please visit: www.rte.ie/helplines.
