The Child Mind Institute's SNF Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health is reshaping how mental health care gets built and delivered by putting young people in charge of the conversation.
The Global Youth Advisory Council, a group of adolescents and young adults, collaborates directly with mental health professionals and researchers to design solutions that actually work for their peers. Rather than adults deciding what teens need, this model invites the people most affected to shape the solutions themselves.
Mai El Shoush, Partnerships Campaign Manager at the SNF Global Center, emphasizes that youth perspectives transform mental health care from something done to young people into something built with them. When teenagers help design interventions, they spot problems that adults miss. They understand what prevents peers from seeking help, what language resonates, and what barriers exist in schools and communities.
This approach aligns with growing evidence that adolescents engaged in their own care show better outcomes. The advisory council model also addresses a critical gap: most mental health solutions get developed without input from the people who'll actually use them. Teens know their friends won't download an app if the interface feels patronizing. They know schools need strategies that don't add stigma. They understand what builds trust.
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation's investment in this collaborative structure reflects a shift in child mental health. Rather than positioning youth as passive recipients of care, this work recognizes adolescents as experts on their own experience. That distinction matters for everything from app design to school-based interventions to crisis support systems.
For parents, this development suggests that newer mental health tools and programs increasingly reflect what young people actually need and want. When your teenager encounters a mental health resource at school or online, there's a better chance it was shaped with input from people their age. That peer-informed design often translates to better engagement and outcomes.
The collaboration between the Child Mind Institute and young advisors