On Thursday, Project Healthy Minds hosted a day-long festival of content and activations in honor of World Mental Health Day.

According to the mental health nonprofit, it is the world’s largest celebration of mental health awareness.

Panelists included Julie Rice of SoulCycle and Peoplehood, Andy Dunn of Bonobos and Pie, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and celebrity and mental health advocate Demi Lovato. In addition to the daytime events, Project Healthy Minds will host an evening gala at Spring Studios to honor its first frontrunner of the year, Chance the Rapper. Other participants honored include Lovato, Savannah Guthrie, Kyle Richards, Dr. Jennifer Ashton and more.

In addition to the day’s content, Project Healthy Minds also planned a series of fitness and mental health activities with Lululemon, Equinox and SoulCycle, a meditation with actress Sanaa Lathan and influencer-led group runs.

Throughout the day, Project Healthy Minds presented several panels at the HBO Theater in Hudson Yards. It started with a panel discussion about mental health as a founder and workplace wellness with Rice and Dunn, who both agreed they had epiphany moments that led them to focus on mental health. For both, creating an environment where people feel comfortable to talk about mental health or everyday challenges is crucial.

“Cultures are based on the DNA of their founders, and because Elizabeth (Cutler) and I are so obsessed with relationships and community, we made sure that there was peer-to-peer communication that allowed people to know each other to help with mental health,” Rice said.

Dunn, who has written a book about his experiences with mental health, added: “(With the book ‘Burn Rate’) I should have shared what I wanted to hide from everyone. … It’s best we take it. This experience we all have, and we make it known because it is a real source of connection.”

However, both agreed that hard work is still crucial in the workplace.

“There’s nothing wrong with having expectations and asking people to work hard, but appreciation is underrated,” Rice said.

Similarly, Hochul went on to talk about reducing the stigma surrounding mental health and the many initiatives she is pursuing as governor, such as banning cell phones in schools. Like Dunn and Rice, for Hochul it all starts with conversations and forums that actually talk about mental health.

“Get the validators that people trust,” Hochul said, emphasizing the impact of celebrities speaking out about mental health. “We are a society influenced by influencers.”

Lovato is one such example. She took the stage with OBB Media founder and CEO Michael D. Ratner to discuss mental health storytelling in the media in a conversation moderated by NBC’s Carson Daly, who also opened up about his mental health issues problems spoke. Lovato and Ratner have worked together on several projects, including “Dancing With the Devil,” a documentary about her past traumas, 2018 overdose and the aftermath.

“Any time someone with a face is willing to be open, honest and vulnerable, that leads to more people being open, honest and vulnerable,” Ratner said.

“I had to be the role model I needed at 13 because I knew there were 13-year-olds out there who were still struggling and who couldn’t identify with the 50-year-olds who had recovered from eating disorders and were now ready to talk about it,” Lovato said. “I hope that the work I have done on myself can inspire others to stand up for themselves in a way that can have a ripple effect and inspire their friends or family to seek help fetch.”