Deborah Wan - President-elect, World Federation for Mental Health

Deborah Wan Lai-yau brims with pride as she is warmly greeted by friendly staff at a restaurant in Tsing Yi. This isn't a typical eatery - it is a social enterprise she helped set up and employs people who have recovered from mental illness.

'Look at them - you won't believe it. They function just like any other person,' says Wan, a veteran social worker who has been dedicated to the promotion of mental health for more than 30 years. 'Why should we treat them differently?'

Wan's journey started in 1975 when she volunteered with a halfway house in To Kwa Wan, which was run by New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association.

'More than 10 people were crammed into a space of little more than 800 square feet. I said to myself, 'I must do something',' she says.

She became New Life's general secretary in 1981 and was later made its CEO, retiring two years ago. Building New Life from a group of 40 to an 800-strong organisation, serving more than 5,000 people a day by the time she left, while pioneering a host of initiatives along the way, Wan has played an instrumental role in providing much-needed support and guidance to the mentally ill and their carers.

With a strong sense of responsibility and a fighting spirit, Wan has conquered many challenges. One of the biggest obstacles she faced was in developing community psychiatric services during the 1980s, which involved persuading angry protesters unwilling to have halfway houses built in their neighbourhoods.

'There was a lot of misunderstanding about people who have recovered from mental illness. We had to do a lot to rid public prejudice,' Wan says.