About DTC Youth Policy Lab
Teen-led policy work. Not youth-washing.
A fully teen-led research lab putting young people into the global digital-policy pipeline: as the researchers, not just the subjects. Founded at the IGF in 2023 in Kyoto. Headquartered in Singapore.
The numbers
The consultation gap, by the numbers.
Countries with social media bans on minors
None consulted youth
0Restriction DatabaseMeaningful youth policy input
Measures tracked in our database
Every entry sourced
0Global Teen DBGovernance framework we've authored
ILMM
0ILMMPeer-reviewed studies in progress
Who blanket restrictions hurt most
The teens who depend on these spaces most.
For many queer teens, social media is their only access to community, affirmation, and crisis resources, particularly in unsupportive homes or conservative regions.
LGBTQ+ Youth
Youth in Crisis
Low-Income Students
Youth in All Contexts
These groups need more online access, not less. That documented failure, not a vague aspiration toward “youth inclusion,” is what DTC exists to address.
Our history
From a teen-led coalition to a policy lab.
Founded at the UN IGF
At the invitation of the IGF Secretariat, the Dynamic Teen Coalition was established at the 2023 UN Internet Governance Forum in Kyoto: the first teen-led coalition at the IGF.
first teen-led coalition
Real work. Real stakes.
DTC researchers do the same work as adult policy professionals: building databases, publishing in peer-reviewed journals, briefing delegates at the UN. We don't treat youth as a footnote.
What makes us different
The Founders
The people who started it.
Pyrate Ruby Passell
DTC Founders
Australia / United States
Stacy Gildenston
DTC Founders
Australia / United States
Leadership team
The people leading the work.
A globally distributed leadership team building the lab in 2026, on top of the Dynamic Teen Coalition's work at the UN since the IGF in 2023 in Kyoto.
Aditya Majumdar
Research Lead, Social Media Bans
United States
Built the world's first global database documenting social media bans affecting teens, and led IGF advocacy challenging blanket teen bans with national representatives.
Jasper Tay
Research & Web
Singapore
Authored the first comprehensive study of ageism across the IGF's National and Regional Initiatives (NRIs), and led DTC's website development.
Ahaan Nigam
Research, Data & Web Design
United States
Discrimination case-finding and data structuring across DTC's restriction and ageism research, plus website UX/UI design.
Tejas Karusala
Technical & Infrastructure
United States
Technical testing and applied work, plus website functionality and improvements.
Lương Long Giang
Primitives Lead
Vietnam / United States
Leading the 3 Primitives collaboration and composed DTC's 2026 theme music.
Hisham Abdul Hafeez Jamali
Publication Head
UAE / Pakistan
Leads DTC's publication pipeline, preparing research and policy outputs for release.
Beyond the Lab
We show up in person.
Research lives in documents, but change happens in rooms. Here is what it looks like when the DTC team shows up at the table.
DTC at the United Nations, New York, engaging across UN processes: the IGF (2023–2025), and now the ECOSOC Youth Forum, HLPF, WSIS+20 and UNGA via the UN Major Group for Children & Youth (2025).
In Motion
Out in the world.
Policy research is only as good as the conversations it starts. A few captured moments from DTC out in the field.
Putting the brief in their hands
Reaching delegations on the floor
Conversations between sessions
Making the case in person
Join the people
closing the gap.
We're looking for high schoolers who want to do rigorous research. Policymakers, researchers, and journalists: we'd love to talk.