Constance Scharff, PhD

Constance “Ahuva Batya” Scharff, PhD is an internationally recognized speaker and author on the topics of addiction and trauma recovery, the psychological impacts of climate change, and women’s mental health. She is the founder of the Institute for Complementary and Indigenous Mental Health Research. Her writing centers around using complementary health and contemplative practices to improve mental health treatment outcomes and wellbeing. She is a passionate advocate for decolonizing mental healthcare and incorporating indigenous practices and ontologies into healthcare services, as well as radical social transformation to lessen the impacts of climate change. Dr. Scharff is a recent recipient of St. Lawrence University’s Sol Feinstone Humanitarian Award, honoring her service to and advocacy for those suffering from mental illness, trauma, and addiction. She regularly travels the world speaking, teaching, and advocating for compassionate health practices that destigmatize mental health problems and sociocultural adjustments to improve human existence and experience. 

Join the Research Team

Currently, Dr. Scharff is working on a new project researching the experience of bravery. A Year of Living Bravely will be an important work adding to our current understanding of bravery, especially among people many might not initially consider “brave.” If you’d like to be part of this important research, consider giving to our Go Fund Me campaign, to support the costs of the research.