Walking the Walk
The Human Network
For Morgan Millstein and Sophia Trugerman, creators of The Human Network, journaling is more than a way of expression but instead is a vision for storytelling through mental health positivity and a tool for community building.
Millstein, a U-M graduate currently pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology, is joined by Trugerman, an Economics major who is gearing up for her return to Ann Arbor in the fall for her junior year at the University. The duo met through Riley's Way at the University of Michigan, a national nonprofit organization that invests and supports others through programs and an inclusive community. Their goal for The Human Network is to provide opportunities for others to write their own stories in physical notebooks placed in hotspots in the community. Their mission is to make your community a little less lonely and a little more united.
For this episode of Walking The Walk, we had the opportunity to interview Millstein and Trugerman to discuss their creation of The Human Network, its impact on community development, their current studies, and their expanding social media presence.
Listen to the interview on Spotify, or view a summarized transcription of our interview with Millstein and Trugerman below:
So why did you create a project that is this mental health forward and focuses on psychology?
Morgan: The Human Network started as an idea for me. I have always been a big journaler. It has always helped me with my mental health and organizing my thoughts. I had read a book called The Authenticity Project, by Claire Pooley. It gave me an idea for a social experiment, to place a journal that I had decorated, which invited people to read the stories of others and then contribute their own. I put the journals in my favorite coffee shop. When I saw people writing amazing things and responding to others, I knew this was an idea that I wanted to turn into something because it was making an impact.
Sophia: I have always had a passion for understanding mental health and finding ways to help people share their stories and create community. In my freshman year, I was involved with this organization called Riley's Way. They're a national nonprofit focused on kindness and leadership. Through that organization at school, I met Morgan and her brilliant idea of The Human Network. Within two minutes of her presentation to our group, I knew this was something I loved and would be passionate about.
One idea for The Human Network began after you became more aware of the mental health crisis on campus. What were you seeing that caused you to provide your own outlet?
Morgan: Everyone in Michigan has a hard work environment and is putting a lot of pressure on themselves. When I spoke to people, they would say how stressed they were and how they wished they had another outlet. I also realized how draining social media and technology are for people. I knew I wanted to do something removed from technology and the virtual world. I also read in my psychology classes how mindful it is to journal and expressively write. That was the inspiration.
Mental health is something that is incredibly difficult for people to open up about. So how do you persuade complete strangers to tell their story without you two actually being present?
Sophia: All of our journals have an intro page. We encourage you to share and read the stories of others, and it offers an open page for people. If someone has something on their chest and they want to write a story, amazing, people will read it. People are coming to say “have a great day,” or share their favorite quote or motto. And those often tend to be just as valuable as the long stories as well. It's all of these things together that I think make the journal so welcoming, and this space for vulnerability that then allows people to share even more. We also have a list of mental health resources in the journal. We focus on making sure people are aware that it is a safe space.
Let's talk about the community building aspect of The Human Network.
Morgan: We hosted our first connection event in April. We knew we wanted it to be an intimate event with 20 people, so we sent out invitations to close friends. At the beginning of the event, we had everyone write for 20 minutes. We encouraged them to be vulnerable. We passed the journals around the table, and everyone started talking more and connecting. We plan to host more of these connection events to engage with the community. Another fun part of that event was that it was at Argus Farm, where we keep one of our journals. We were able to do it at a coffee shop upstairs. There was a The Human Network journal full of entries from the wider community.
Sophia: In any space where we add a journal, we try to figure out how we can build the community. Although we value not being in a digital space, we encourage those who see our journal in a coffee shop to visit our Instagram or website; those are places that emphasize kindness and connecting. We hope to make The Human Network a genuine network of people that everyone trusts.
Awesome. Is there anything else that you want to put out there to the world?
Morgan: I want everyone to know that they're not alone. They can visit our website, read the archives of The Human Network, and realize that maybe if someone's acting negatively, it's just to extend that level of empathy and understanding to people. Lead with love, empathy, and care, and embrace your humanity.
Learn more about The Human Network at thehumannetwork.online.