Dignity is a word with many meanings, most of them highly relevant to relationships with people with mental illness and the provision of care for them. Dignity refers to restraint and propriety in relation to others; conduct in keeping with ethical principles; the appropriate use of authority; relationship with esteem and recognition of value of others. All of these concepts refer to principles which should be respected in mental health work and it is noble, necessary and useful that the World Dignity project has taken upon itself to remind us of these rules and promote their application worldwide.