USAID Offers $50,000 to Youth Innovators for Digital Well-being Solutions

The USAID Youth Well-Being Prize Competition aims to discover inventive solutions created by young individuals, catering to the needs of fellow youth while ensuring accessibility and inclusivity. These solutions seek to provide comprehensive educational resources and vital information, allowing all young people, regardless of their backgrounds or identities, to have equitable access to materials that resonate with their life experiences.

Objective of the Competition 

The primary objective is to enrich the breadth of knowledge and accessibility, empowering young individuals to safeguard their well-being, security, and positively impact their personal lives and communities. Successful young innovators, as detailed in a document seen by Investingport , stand a chance to win a substantial cash prize of $50,000, providing them with the means to drive and expand their innovative concepts.

The driving force behind this grant initiative lies in acknowledging the array of challenges that young people face, spanning mental health strains, digital risks, gender-based violence, and the far-reaching consequences of climate change. USAID, in response, introduced the revised Youth in Development Policy in 2022, emphasizing the importance of involving young individuals as partners and collaborators in enhancing their access to secure services, information, and economic opportunities. This policy also advocates for their active participation in decision-making processes to strengthen their collective influence.

USAID is actively seeking individuals aged 29 or under, particularly those with digital ideas in areas such as mental well-being, digital safety, protection against gender-based violence, and addressing the impacts of climate change.

Mental Health: Proposed concepts should center on enhancing the psychological well-being of children and young adults. Ideas aimed at providing tailored support, psychotherapeutic approaches, and stress alleviation to improve the quality of life for young individuals are encouraged in this category.

Digital Safety: This category focuses on responsible digital media use, including social media, and ensuring online security. Ideas centered on mitigating digital risks stemming from online and offline interactions, such as cyberbullying, misinformation, and explicit content creation, are welcomed.

Safeguarding: Innovative solutions addressing the prevention and intervention of child and youth abuse, exploitation, neglect, and violence are sought. This includes responses to sexual exploitation and abuse.

Gender-Based Violence: Innovations in this category should combat harmful behaviours based on gender identity and expression. Entries promoting gender equality, equity, and preventing gender-based violence are encouraged.

Climate Change: Solutions related to climate awareness, sustainable practices, renewable energy, and climate adaptation are sought. Initiatives that address climate-related anxiety and grief among young individuals are encouraged.

All innovative concepts should be designed with young audiences in mind, employing digital tools for development and execution. Examples of potential innovations include a mental health-focused website, a social media campaign to address digital risks, digital-based training programs for youth violence prevention, an interactive game raising awareness about gender-based violence, and digital organizing for climate initiatives.

The application window opened on July 27, 2023, and will close at 5pm ET on September 29, 2023. To apply, interested individuals can fill out the application form and submit their innovative proposals.