Wellbeing Explained brings in the experts to answer the questions others won't, bust myths, and go deeper into the science of wellbeing.
On the podcast, Be Well Co's Head of Research Dr Matthew Iasiello sits down with academics from different fields to unpack their work, the challenges they're facing, and what it actually means for the rest of us. Formerly Researching Happy.
For workplace wellbeing practitioners, HR and people and culture teams, psychologists, coaches, and anyone in the wellbeing research space.
Made by Be Well Co.
Meet the Scientific Committee for IPPA 2027 Istanbul
In July 2027 the IPPA World Congress goes to Istanbul, the first time it has been held outside North America and Australia. In this episode Matt sits down with the committee behindit to talk about what they are trying to change and why.
Ten thematic tracks instead of the usual research and practice streams. Fifty travel bursaries aimed at delegates from the global south and students anywhere. A deliberatedecision to stop inviting the same keynote speakers. And some uncomfortable questions about who the field has been listening to for the last twenty years.
What we cover
Why the Congress dropped research and practice streamsfor ten thematic tracks, and how those tracks were chosen
Why the research and practice divide is a fake one, andwhat it costs the field
What it actually takes to make a global conferenceglobal, from visas and flight costs to fifty travel bursaries
The delegate feedback that led the committee to stopinviting familiar keynote speakers
New programming formats, including films, case studiesfrom outside psychology, and matching researchers with practitioners before they arrive
Dr Maggie Zhao on harmony, and why non-Westernperspectives should shape the questions rather than supply extra populations to test theories on
Dr Richard Appiah on rural Ghana, African proverbs, andwhat wellbeing science still gets wrong
Assoc Prof Gökmen Arslan on Istanbul, the Turkishresearch community, and turning attendance into something that lasts
Chapters
13:13 Why Istanbul, and who theCongress has been missing
20:15 Bursaries, students, andthe end of the repeat keynote
32:18 New programming formatsand the research to practice gap
48:05 Dr Maggie Zhao on harmonyand the limits of Western theory
57:52 Dr Richard Appiah on whatwellbeing science gets wrong
1:17:35 Assoc Prof Gökmen Arslanon Istanbul and the Turkish community
Connect further
IPPA 2027 World Congress, Istanbul (https://ippanetwork.org/ippa-world-congress)
Follow Matt
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-iasiello/
Substack:https://substack.com/@mattiasiello
Wellbeing Explained is hosted byBe Well Co's Head of Research & Translation. Better wellbeing practice starts with better conversations. We bring in the experts to answer questions that others won't, bust myths, and go deeper into the science. Be Well Co is a social enterprise by Camp Quality that focuses on proactive mental health and wellbeing care. Through evidence-based wellbeing workshops and programs to organisations, Be Well Co is on a mission to make an impact for the 5 million Australians currently languishing.
Follow Be Well Co
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/bewellco_/
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/BeWellCo1/
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/bewellco1
Website:https://www.bewellco.io/
12 Oct 2026
What has Beyond Blue actually achieved? (A lot) | Dr Luke Martin
In this episode Matt speaks with Dr Luke Martin, clinical psychologist, co-founder of Prevention United, and now Clinical Spokesperson and Senior Specialist at Beyond Blue. Matt puts aquestion to him that plenty of people in the sector have quietly (or loudly) asked: what has Beyond Blue actually achieved in 25 years?
What follows is a genuinely useful conversation about awareness, prevention, concept creep, and what amentally healthy society would need to look like.
What we cover
The Kids Matter project and what happens when you askwhat good looks like in a school
What Beyond Blue actually does, beyond the awarenesscampaigns people remember
What the independent 25-year review found about mentalhealth literacy, stigma and help seeking in Australia
Why awareness was never the finish line, and the leakyroof problem
The 12 year gap between people's first symptoms andasking for help
What the new CSIRO report says about the four futuresAustralia could end up in
Concept creep, identity labels, and taking people'sdistress seriously without taking it literally
Where wellbeing promotion fits, and why everybodystaying in their lane only works if the lanes connect
Chapters
03:23 From clinical practice toKids Matter and Prevention United
11:16 What has Beyond Blueactually achieved in 25 years?
25:39 Awareness isn't the finishline
31:33 The next 25 years, and therisk of medicalising everyday life
42:57 Promotion, prevention, andwho else needs to play a part
Watch on YouTube (https://youtu.be/6M2gQXrThfk)
Read more on Substack (https://wellbeingexplained.substack.com)
Connect further
Follow Dr Luke Martin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-martin-9b20a716b/)
Beyond Blue (https://www.beyondblue.org.au/)The 25 year review paper (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/epidemiology-and-psychiatric-sciences/article/beyond-awareness-25-years-of-population-data-on-the-impact-of-australias-beyond-blue/8D0981E64B5503277B5208184F80BC77)
The CSIRO report (https://www.csiro.au/en/news/all/news/2026/september/new-beyond-blue-report-explores-the-forces-shaping-the-next-decade-of-mental-health-in-australia)
Follow Matt
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-iasiello/)Substack (https://substack.com/@mattiasiello)
Wellbeing Explained is hosted by Be Well Co's Head of Research & Translation. Better wellbeing practice starts with better conversations. We bring in the experts to answer questionsthat others won't, bust myths, and go deeper into the science.
Be Well Co is a social enterprise by Camp Quality that focuses on proactive mental health and wellbeing care. Through evidence-based wellbeing workshops and programs toorganisations, Be Well Co is on a mission to make an impact for the 5 million Australians currently languishing.
Follow Be Well Co
Instagram:Be Well Co (https://www.instagram.com/bewellco_/)
Wellbeing Explained (https://www.instagram.com/wellbeingexplained_/)
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/BeWellCo1/
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/bewellco1
Website:https://www.bewellco.io/
28 Sept 2026
Uncomfortable truths about wellbeing (and what we can do about it) | Prof Carol Ryff
In this episode Matt speaks with Professor Carol Ryff, whose six-dimensional model of psychological wellbeing has been translated into 40 languages and cited in more than 2,000 publications, and who has led the MIDUS national longitudinal study for 25 years.
She explains where the six dimensions came from, why she is deeply opposed to collapsing any of them into a single score, and why she has taken to calling herself the stinkbird of positive psychology.
What we cover
Where the six dimensions came from, and the undergraduate reading that started them
Why wellbeing was never meant to be summed into one number, and what gets lost when it is
What MIDUS does differently on depth of measurement, and what disciplinary training makes people leave out
Why Carol thinks the replication crisis has been badly overstated
The one thing ordinary people name as central to being well that the research has never picked up
The stinkbird, and why she thinks positive psychology has its head in the sand on inequality
What she thinks we should actually do about it, from integrative science to the arts and humanities
What she wants to be known for, and why authenticity appeals to her more now
Connect furtherThe MIDUS study (https://aging.wisc.edu/midus-midlife-in-the-u-s/)Carol's faculty page (https://psych.wisc.edu/staff/ryff-carol/)
Follow MattLinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-iasiello/)Substack (https://substack.com/@mattiasiello)
More episodes of Wellbeing Explained (https://open.spotify.com/show/6pA681UwPjtOPBijIMKUH2?si=456ad087cd024934)
Wellbeing Explained is hosted by Be Well Co's Head of Research & Translation. Better wellbeing practice starts with better conversations. We bring in the experts to answer questions that others won't, bust myths, and go deeper into the science.
Be Well Co is a social enterprise by Camp Quality that focuses on proactive mental health and wellbeing care. Through evidence-based wellbeing workshops and programs to organisations, Be Well Co is on a mission to make an impact for the 5 million Australians currently languishing.
Follow Be Well CoInstagram (https://www.instagram.com/bewellco_/)Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/BeWellCo1/)LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/bewellco1)Website (https://www.bewellco.io/)
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
2 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
29 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 58 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
82
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
82
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