As concerns continue to be brought to light around the global youth mental health crisis, some local innovation leaders across Waterloo Region are chiming in, as a push for change regarding social media, online connectivity, and tech trends presses forward.
It comes as a groundbreaking trial between 29 U.S. states and Meta, the parent company behind Facebook and Instagram, has gotten underway, looking at whether social media platforms are designed to be addictive and the effect it can have on young people.
“They’re struggling so much more today with issues they’re facing at school, at home, looking at what’s in the newspaper around the world,” said William Craddock, Senior Development Manager, Philanthropy with Kids Help Phone (KHP).
“It’s just so many stressors that are compiling and combining together to really create a really intense crisis for young people in the country.”
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Services also recently showed how widespread the youth mental health crisis is across the country, stating that, even though numbers have improved in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers still remain high.
It said that as much as 46 per cent of youth in grades 7 through 12 are continuing to report moderate to serious psychological distress in their lives.
“We have a high degree of confidence that tech is creating challenges for our youth, a lot of struggles pertaining to social media. That’s well documented,” said Sheldon McCormick, CEO of Communitech.
“At the same time, we have a view that tech can be a big part of the solution in terms of how we support our youth.”
The continued situation facing the region’s youth has led to a local partnership between those two entities: Communitech and Kids Help Phone, with Communitech recently hosting the Kids Help Phone Accelerator Breakfast in order to create a more open discussion about what struggles are being seen and what advancements could be made to help combat them.
“Guests heard about the state of youth mental health in Canada, the increasing complexity of challenges facing young people, and how KHP continues to evolve its services and technology to meet youth where they are,” said Kids Help Phone in a statement.
“The breakfast also showcased the impact of donor and community support in helping ensure that every young person in Canada can access mental health support whenever they need it.”
“We’ve got an incredible tech ecosystem here in Waterloo Region; incredible talent, a lot of community builders,” McCormick stated.
“It’s important for our tech ecosystem to be globally competitive, but ultimately, we all recognize in the tech industry that there’s a much more important thing than just building companies, and that’s supporting the wellness and the health of our community at large.”
He stated that the technological landscape currently at the hands of today’s youth is a constantly evolving area, with advancement being made regularly in regard to what they’re consuming on a regular basis online, and these companies, innovators, and organizations having to constantly adapt to those changing conditions.
“It’s important that, as the number one youth mental health service in the country, we evolve and stay on top of the ways that young people are reaching out and the ways they want to communicate,” said Craddock.
“In the first half of 2026, our overnight texting demand increased 24 per cent, so what that’s telling us is young people are up late at night; they’re worried about something. Maybe it’s something at school they have tomorrow, maybe it’s an issue they’re dealing with at home, but they’re up in the night, on their phone.”
He said that trend has only been growing and “it’s continuing to go up, so there’s a real need.”
In terms of combating the issues at the heart of the crisis and making advancements to tackle them head-on, McCormick stated that it’s a complex problem, needing pushes in various different areas across the tech sector in order to properly monitor and manage in the years ahead.
“I think what I often see in Waterloo Region is that entrepreneurs here in the tech industry, they have a really strong understanding that they’ve got a responsibility to build more than just their companies. They’re building their companies in the context of a greater community,” McCormick stated.
“What’s so fantastic about our tech ecosystem here is that they want to give back and contribute to the health and wellbeing of the broad community that they’re part of.”
In terms of where Communitech sits in that system, McCormick said that it’s working as a bridge, better helping those entrepreneurs and local businesses understand the problem, while giving them the opportunity to discover some incremental solutions.
He said that’s the exact idea with this collaboration alongside Kids Help Phone.
“We are acting as a convener for our community to shine a light on the issue itself and, not to recreate or make redundant work, but to shine a light on what’s happening at Kids Help Phone and invite the entrepreneurial ecosystem and the incredible tech talent that we have to contribute to that work,” he said.
“That’s really what we’re trying to do: invite the local tech ecosystem to give back.”
As far as Kids Help Phone is concerned, Waterloo Region serves as a focal point for progress and potential innovations that could help point the issue back in the right direction.
“Waterloo (Region)’s leadership in technology, artificial intelligence, and entrepreneurship makes the region an important partner as KHP develops the next generation of digital mental health supports for young people across Canada.,” said Kids Help Phone.
As technology has continued to advance, the two said that there are some positives to draw from the situation and, while many focus on the addictive habits that areas such as social media can create, they said that it also provides better outlets for those youth to connect and relay their concerns in a safe and supportive manner.
“Young people are reaching out,” said Craddock.
“It’s great for us to see because they’re reaching out, they’re getting support, they’re not bottling up their feelings and creating a bad situation for themselves.”
The local partnership is one of many connections that the two hope to achieve in the years ahead across the various industries and leaders across Waterloo Region, saying that it’s one of many that need to be established for the betterment of the next generation.
“There’s nothing more important than the health of our kids, the health of our youth,” said McCormick.
“If we can find ways to galvanize our community, find ways to help shine a light on how they can help, it’s just something that we’re really proud to do at Communitech.”
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