Jack.org is the only charity in Canada that partners with young leaders in every province and territory to improve youth mental health outcomes in their communities. Our reasons are clear: suicide remains the leading health-related cause of death for young people, accounting for 25% of youth death, and most young people still don't get the support they need when they're struggling with their mental health. The pandemic has only exacerbated this emergency, with youth across the country consistently at higher risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes than any other age group.
Our work aims to enhance young people's ability to recognize struggle in both themselves and their peers, seek out appropriate mental health support and resources, and advocate for systems that are better able to meet the diverse and complex needs of young people. Our goal is to ensure that every young person in the country gets the help they deserve.
Our Programs
Jack Talks are mental health presentations delivered by two post-secondary aged youth speakers who have been trained to use the power of their personal stories to safely educate their peers about how to look out for themselves and one another, increase their mental health literacy, and build awareness about resources that are available in their communities.
Jack Chapters are groups of young leaders who work year-round to identify and dismantle barriers to positive mental health in their communities. With training and mentorship from Jack.org staff, they organize mental health initiatives that are designed to meet the needs of their peers. Through these awareness and education initiatives, youth Chapter leaders raise awareness, reduce stigma, encourage help-seeking, and help build mentally healthy communities.
Jack Summits are youth-led conferences held across the country where young people gather at a local, regional, and national level to share ideas, build leadership and advocacy skills, and strategize on how to change systems for the better.
Be There is an award-winning digital resource that teaches people how to recognize when a peer is struggling, safely engage in difficult conversations, and protect their own mental health while supporting someone else.
Network Reps are thirteen young leaders chosen to represent every region in Canada. Throughout the year, Network Reps lend their voices to program design and speak on behalf of the network in national media and events around the world.
Our Principles
Youth Front and Centre. We strive to constantly elevate young people’s voices. We build young leaders’ leadership skills, amplify under-represented perspectives, and provide support and training to empower the peer-to-peer education and advocacy efforts of our network. By creating space for young people to work alongside the Jack.org staff, we keep youth voice, perspective, and lived expertise at the core of what we do.
Engage with Empathy, Respect, and Kindness. We endeavour to be thoughtful and act from a place of empathy and concern toward others and ourselves. We engage with our youth network, colleagues, stakeholders, and partners with an open heart and mind. Always listening, we create safe spaces so everyone is comfortable expressing their authentic selves.
Innovation Focused & Evidence-Based. We constantly look to distinguish ourselves as one of the most innovative organizations in the sector and beyond. Through continuous learning and reflection, we pave our path forward, while always adapting our evidence-based practices to drive impact-focused improvement to youth mental health and wellbeing.
Collaborate with Curiosity. We work to overcome challenges as a united team, strengthened and informed by diverse perspectives. With humility, we acknowledge that we do not have all the answers. We actively seek a variety of ideas, perspectives, lived experiences, and professional expertise. Always curious, we work to overcome and learn from our failures as we strive to accomplish our mission.