SHIELD Youth Council

Aarna Sahu, from the SHIELD Youth Council, described what happened ten days before the end of her school year during last year's "Youth Voices in Digital Wellbeing USA Group 1" session at the SHIELD Youth Voices in Digital Wellbeing series. Her English paper was flagged by an It In AI detector. Her school's policy was a zero tolerance for any AI detection, no exceptions. The paper was entirely her own work, but her grade dropped twelve percent with no recourse. She now runs every piece of her own writing through five different AI checkers before submitting anything. The tools are not reliable, so when the penalties are absolute, honest students are unfairly punished. And she is not the only student living this way. #AIineducation #youthvoices #digitalpolicy

AI has no senses or feelings, no memory of us, no feelings, and no stake in what happens next based on what it tells us. And still we turn to it, one in five young people globally, for something as personal as mental health advice. In her new piece for the SHIELD Youth Council, Annika Singh explores why. Her answer has multiple angles. AI reflects back the version of ourselves we want to see and need in order to feel validated, while a friend or therapist would offer something a lot harder, honest feedback. That pull is stronger in adolescence, when wellbeing is unusually sensitive to reinforcement. There is also the fact that for some, seeking help still carries a taboo at home, and going through a parent isn't always possible. The risk of using AI for mental health support isn't just bad advice. It's a chatbot mistaking a real crisis for a normal conversation, with no one else finding out until after. It can also mean months of confiding in something that never catches what a person would. The question isn't whether AI has reached the bar for diagnosis. It's why so many of us reached for it first. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/dKCAPD5Y #AImentalhealth #youthwellbeing #youthvoice

Thank you, Luke Goforth, for sharing your voice! As you say, "the voices of youth are more powerful than we realize. If you have something to share, speak up!"

We are often called 'the future,' but we are already living with today's decisions. Geneva produced pledges. It did not produce certainty. In a new blog post, youth council member Crystal B. Isanda writes about the inaugural UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance and the AI for Good Global Summit, where new commitments, including a proposed AI Child Safety Pledge and the Coalition for Children's Rights and Protection in the Age of AI emerged alongside a wave of youth-led sessions. Crystal's argument is not that the gathering failed. Governance built only around today's risks has a short shelf life. She points to social media two decades ago as proof that institutions consistently design for the internet they can imagine, not the one that arrives. She asks for youth participation that moves beyond consultation into genuine co-design, AI literacy that encompasses governance and accountability rather than just technical use, and a conversation that shifts beyond a handful of large capital cities to others like Nairobi, Bissau, São Paulo, and Dhaka. Thank you Crystal for sharing your voice! #youthvoice #onlinesafety #responsibleAI https://lnkd.in/eXbKavRt

Introducing Abhinay Chauhan! Thank you for your focus on such an important topic, social media algorithms and mental health, and thank you for being a part of our Youth Council! SHIELD the Future #youthperspective #strongertogether #onlinesafety

Introducing Luke Goforth! We look forward to sharing perspectives and working together to find ways to use AI to make the world a better place. Thank you for being a part of the Youth Council! SHIELD the Future #youthperspective #strongertogether #onlinesafety

Introducing Alex King! We are looking forward to working together to preserve human authenticity, connection, and safety. #strongertogether #youthvoices

Introducing our member Annika Singh! We also can't wait to see what we can create together. #strongertogether #youthvoices #awarenessmatters

On behalf of my fellow SYC2026 members, I take this opportunity to thank the SHIELD the Future for the space they've created for Children and Youth to participate in matters affecting their Now & Future, especially in Digital Safety and Emerging Technologies. Special thanks to Angeline Corvaglia Confidence Osein Theresa Ryan-Rouger Tiffany Wycoff Anil Raghuvanshi, and everyone that enabled us to be here. We welcome collaboration with all like-minded Children, Youth, Leaders, Governments and Organizations that are in Technology, Digital Safety, Child Rights Protection and Youth Empowerment. Upendo Nawire Co-Head, Shield Youth Council