We are passionate believers in the value of participatory work with children and young people so that their views and experiences inform product design as well as policy and regulation relating to online services.
In 2023 Praesidio were commissioned by TikTok to develop and design their global youth council – the first of it’s kind to be run on behalf of a large tech company. We brought to this project extensive experience with creating and running youth councils, panels, and participation groups in a wide range of international contexts.
The TikTok Global Youth Council was launched in December 2023 and aims to connect young people directly to the platform and the relevant teams within TikTok that can take their ideas and make changes on the app. The council brings together teenagers from across the world with 15 representatives from the USA, UK, Brazil, Indonesia, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and Morocco. Key priorities have been to ensure the council sustains a safe and respectful working environment for children to share their perspectives without feeling pressured or constrained and to ensure that their voice has an impact and translates into change.
In meetings so far, the council members have addressed digital wellbeing as well as the experiences of reporting and blocking. The council members come to the meetings with their own individual perspectives and collaborate to come up with real, workable solutions to their concerns. Our councillors have already had the opportunity to meet the TikTok CEO, Shou Chew, to ask him questions, and hear from him directly.
We believe that The TikTok Global Youth Council provides an important model for technology companies to engage with and listen to their users on an ongoing basis.