About DTC Youth Policy Lab
Young people doing the work. Not just being consulted.
A youth-led think tank working across the issues shaping young people's lives through policy research, public conversation, and practical action. We build useful public knowledge and help turn ideas into action. Founded in 2023 in Ethiopia, working internationally and remotely.
Who blanket restrictions hurt most
The teens who depend on these spaces most.
For many marginalized teens, social media is their only access to community, affirmation, and crisis resources, particularly in unsupportive homes or conservative regions.
Marginalized 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.
Annual Briefings
The record of our impact.
Detailed institutional briefs tracking our empirical research, global audits, and youth-led policy interventions.
Auditing international governance bodies and mapping digital rights.
Inaugural launch and foundational policy frameworks from IGF Kyoto.
Our history
From a teen-led coalition to a youth-led think tank.
Founded in Ethiopia
The Dynamic Teen Coalition was founded in Ethiopia in 2023, becoming the first teen-led coalition at the Internet Governance Forum.
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 2022.
Aditya Majumdar
Executive Director
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
Outreach & Community
Vietnam / United States
Supports DTC's outreach and community engagement with young people and collaborators.
Hisham Abdul Hafeez Jamali
Publication Head
UAE / Pakistan
Leads DTC's publication pipeline, preparing research and policy outputs for release.
Hunthavi Vipassana
Deputy Head of Publications
India
Works with Hisham leading the publications and outputs of the organization.
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.
Making the case in person
Hackathon
Hisham at the UN
Hisham in conversation
Join the people
closing the gap.
We're looking for young people who want to research, create, and contribute to work that matters. Researchers, educators, journalists, and community partners: we'd love to talk.