Staff wellbeing

ANU recognises the importance of a holistic approach to wellbeing across all aspects of our lives including the workplace. As part of the ANU 2025 Strategic Plan we have a focus on ensuring a healthy and inclusive work environment. Maintaining your health and wellness, and supporting the health and wellness of those around you, is an important part of our daily life at ANU. Taking the time to care for our health allows us to continue to engage and perform well in the activities that are important to us, that give us meaning and enjoyment. Enjoy our latest wellness bulletin (See Reference Documents) and email the Injury Management Team to subscribe, or for more information.

Use the links below to find out more on each of these four areas of wellness:

Psychological wellness

Peaceful scene at Sullivans Creek on ANU Acton Campus

Psychological wellness is being able to participate fully in your daily activities including work, study, rest and leisure, as well as being able to find pleasure and joy in your daily life without being overwhelmed or inhibited by difficult thoughts or feelings. Just as maintaining physical fitness requires training, practice and care, so does building and maintaining mental ’fitness’.

Care for your mental health and promote your mental fitness by:
Finding a daily or weekly routine that works for you	Information Sheet - Mental Health Self Care
Cultivating mindfulness in your day	ANU mindfulness
Being deliberate about finding joy and practicing gratitude	Head to Health: Purposeful Activity; Healthline: effects of joy; Harvard Health: the happiness-health connection
Learning how to manage feelings of sadness or worry	ANU Mental Health Resources General Mental Health
Knowing when and how to seek help for yourself or other people	Employee Assistance Program; ANU Mental Health Resources
Maintaining your financial wellbeing	Australian Government - MoneySmart

Physical wellness

Photo of two people carrying boxes while walking through ANU campus

Physical wellness is the ability to maintain a level of activity and quality of life that allows us to participate in our daily routines and tasks without undue fatigue, discomfort or physical stress. It includes taking care of our bodies and recognising that our daily habits and behaviours have a significant impact on overall health and quality of life.

Care for your physical wellness by:
Moving and changing your posture frequently throughout the day	Try out the Work Rave Break Timer for PC or Mac
Participating in regular exercise sessions across the week	ANU Sports; Find your 30
Eating regularly and enjoying foods that nourish your body and mind	Dieticians Association of Australia: Smart Eating for You; Healthy Recipes from Make Healthy Normal (NSW Gov); Heart Foundation: Koori Cookbook
See your treating healthcare provider for regular, routine check-ups	ANU Medical Centre RACGP Find a Practitioner
Investing the time in proper rest and relaxation and supporting good quality sleep	Healthy Sleep Information Sheet
Making sure that your computer workstation or other task stations are set up to support a relaxed, comfortable posture	Occupational Strains Liaison Officer Network
Learning about our Smoke Free Campus	Smoke Free Campus

Social wellness

Photo of two people talking while seated at Kambri in ANU

Whether we see ourselves as an extroverted or an introverted person, humans are essentially social creatures. While the places and the way in which we like to connect and the time we spend each day connecting may vary significantly from person to person, engaging in our shared spaces and community activities remains an important part of our overall health.

You can support your social wellness by:
Learning about the breadth of our ANU community and supporting an inclusive and welcoming workplace	Become an ANU Ally, Respect and Inclusion at ANU, Respectful Relationships at ANU
Supporting equitable access for people with disability	Disability Access and Inclusion Working Group
Connecting with work, friends and family	Australian Indigenous Health Infonet: social and emotional wellness
Learning about how to manage conflict	Email HR.Development@anu.edu.au
Participating in your community	ANU Events

Cultural wellness

The inherent culture of a group or organisation has a strong impact on the health and wellbeing of its members. Individual cultural practices and beliefs as well as the culture of the organisation are important things to keep in deliberate focus for the health and wellbeing of all.

Support your own and the organisations cultural health by:
Supporting respectful relationships in all aspects of University Life	ANU Respectful Relationships Unit
Focussing on your connection to self, others and the environment around you	ANU Events ANU Nature Trails
Engaging with spiritual or religious practices and communities	ANU Chaplaincy service; Head to Health. Spirituality; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander - Country, Culture and Spirituality; Spiritual Care Australia
Finding and maintaining purpose and meaning in your daily life.