Why we’re taking a stand
We have experienced censorship and push-back in our efforts to expose the urgent issue of social media addiction and its root cause. The lack of strong legislation and direct action by government exposes a troubling reality: the influence of powerful funders like TikTok on the discourse around social media harms. It is unacceptable that platforms contributing to the problem can stifle debate about the impact of their technologies.
We have seen first hand the negative impact social media has on our peers and in our classrooms. Young people feel trapped by social media's addictive design. Dismissing our lived experience and putting the responsibility on young people to change their habits is neither reasonable nor moral. The harms are well documented and we are beginning to understand the impact on our futures. The time to act is now.
Our Founder
Lewis Swire is a 17 year old, multi-award winning social entrepreneur and student. He is founder of The Curious Times, a youth-led media network dedicated to amplifying youth voice and co-founder of The Global Young Entrepreneur Society, an international non-profit platform for entrepreneurial growth. He sat on the Youth Advisory Board of Childnet International, the UK-based charity responsible for children's online safety.
Lewis has participated as a panelist/speaker at Summit of Minds 2022/23/24, addressing global leaders as well as advocating for youth voice. He has also delivered the Keynote Speech for Safer Internet Day 2024 to internet industry leaders and government ministers. For his social action work, Lewis was decorated with the 2023 Diana Award, 'the most prestigious accolade a young person aged 9-25 years can receive for their social action or humanitarian work', by HRH Prince of Wales, and the 2023 Point Of Light Award by the UK Prime Minister.