TORONTO, Aug. 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- This International Youth Day, we celebrate the incredible potential of young people to shape a sustainable future. Today’s youth are not just tech-savvy innovators; they are also key players in tackling one of their generation’s most pressing issues—mental health.
Mental health is essential for young people to thrive, innovate, and contribute to sustainable development. Yet, many young people face increasing mental health challenges due to the pressures of our changing and fast-paced world. We must invest in bold actions to support their mental well-being and equip them with the tools to drive forward the solutions needed to reach their full potential.
The Being initiative plays a vital role in this effort by investing in innovation, research, and advocacy across 12 countries. Hosted by Grand Challenges Canada, Being focuses on prevention and promotion, responding to the early drivers of young people’s mental health. Since youth are best positioned to identify these needs and offer solutions, we collaborate with youth-led organizations to develop local, innovative solutions. These solutions address key factors that negatively impact youth mental health and well-being, such as family dynamics, bullying, stigma, substance abuse, and more.
“We must centre youth leaders at the forefront of decision-making globally — the leadership of young people, especially those with lived experience of mental health challenges, is so important. In mental health advocacy platforms, the participation and leadership of marginalized Youth populations becomes even more urgent and meaningful,” says Viet Trinh, Being Youth Advisor (Vietnam).
Digital innovations are central to our efforts to equip youth with tools to drive sustainable change while supporting their mental health and well-being. Grand Challenges Canada has supported a wide range of youth-focused digital innovations, including: ‘StepWell’, a digital game in South Africa focused on mental health promotion; ‘Baatcheet’ in India, which uses web-based storytelling to address mental health issues among urban youth; ‘FanaFana-Chat for Change’, in Zimbabwe, offering a digital chatbot service to improve wellbeing among LGBTQIA+ youth; and South Africa’s ‘Bazwa LGBTQIA+ Youth Program’ providing mental health support through a WhatsApp AI chatbot. Additionally, the ‘Tegura Ejo Heza’ platform in Rwanda offers holistic digital learning and peer support.
These digital solutions demonstrate the potential of digital tools to foster mental health, creativity, and resilience among young people. They serve as tools for creating a future where youth can drive sustainable change while being supported in their mental health journey. By prioritizing mental health, we can help young people lead with confidence, creativity, and resilience.
On this International Youth Day, let’s not only celebrate the achievements of young innovators but also commit to supporting their mental health. Together, we can build a future where every young person has the support they need to thrive and make a lasting impact on our world.
For more information: https://being-initiative.org/
For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Aziz Froutan
Bilingual Manager, Media Relations and Communications
aziz.froutan@grandchallenges.ca
About Being:
Hosted by Grand Challenges Canada, Being is an international mental health initiative envisioning a world where young people feel well and thrive. We work with young people to improve their mental health and well-being through research, innovation, and ecosystem building, with a focus on prevention and promotion in 12 priority countries: Colombia, Ecuador, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Morocco, Pakistan, Romania, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Vietnam.
Being is hosted by Grand Challenges Canada (funded in part by the Government of Canada), in partnership with Fondation Botnar, the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Research, Orygen, the Science for Africa Foundation, and United for Global Mental Health.
