Giving Compass' Take:

• Panelists at the World Economic Forum in Davos pushed for more investment in the global mental health crisis and stressed that solutions for these issues need funding. 

• What is the role of donors in providing capital to address the global mental health crisis? 

• Read more about why we need to care about mental health worldwide.

Mental health issues affect billions of people across every corner of the globe, touching every community and every family, and mounting evidence shows the issue is worsening.

To combat the issue, we need to urgently grow our investment in programs that expand access to care, mental health advocates said at a TIME lunch on Wednesday in Davos, Switzerland. “Invest in the system, invest in our rights,” said Elisha London, founder and CEO of United for Global Mental Health. She called for $1 billion in spending on mental health programs worldwide: “It has to happen now.”

The event, held during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, featured a discussion with Indian actress Deepika Padukone, a tribute to Bernard J. Tyson—the late former Chairman and CEO of Kaiser Permanente—and a panel of mental health advocates in discussion with TIME’s Susanna Schrobsdorff. The event was produced in partnership with Kaiser Permanente.

The call for investment received attention for a very good reason: current mental health funding levels are woefully inadequate. In 2015, global funding for development assistance for health was estimated at $36 billion. Of that, only $110 million went toward mental health. Asked what would help address the issue, Padukone, who runs mental health advocacy group The Live Love Laugh Foundation, replied lightly “money, money, money” to the tune of the song.

Read the full article about investment in mental health by Justin Worland at TIME.