YouTube, UNFPA to Foster Safer Digital Spaces in Latin America

YouTube and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) formalized a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop safer digital communities in Latin America and the Caribbean. The collaboration focuses on strengthening the skills of adolescents and educational content creators to prevent online violence and foster inclusive learning environments.

The initiative aims to engage young audiences on their native platforms and channel the platform's creative potential toward projects with social impact. "This agreement opens an immense door for us to connect with young people and adolescents right where they are: in the digital environment," says Alanna Armitage, Representative, UNFPA Mexico. This approach seeks to leverage existing infrastructure and reach to implement large-scale wellness programs.

The digital environment is the primary space for socialization and learning for new generations. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the demographic of adolescents aged 10–19 and youth aged 15–24 includes about 160 million people, representing about 25% of the region's total population, according to UNFPA. Meanwhile, the massification of internet access has also replicated and amplified pre-existing social issues, such as inequality, harassment, and misinformation. 

Susana Sottoli, Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, UNFPA, highlights this duality: "While digitization opens up incredible worlds for us to learn and interact, it also exposes inequalities and violence."

The alliance aims to transfer the agency's expertise in rights protection and youth well-being to the digital ecosystem. It uses the video platform's cultural influence and massive reach to mitigate risks and actively promote safety.

The MoU establishes a collaboration framework based on five strategic lines. First, it will implement online training for content creators to act as agents of change through UNFPA-certified programs. These programs will promote messages about preventing digital violence. Second, it will develop educational resources for teachers and communities to extend this knowledge beyond the virtual environment.

The third and fourth strategies focus on youth. The partnership will conduct workshops on content production and distribution with youth-led organizations. It will also work to strengthen critical skills for safe navigation, such as identifying misinformation and preventing cyberbullying. The fifth line establishes the use of YouTube's measurement tools to assess the reach and impact of the content, allowing for the continuous optimization of communication strategies.

The initial implementation of the program will involve 50 content creators focused on education, known as edutubers. The collaboration model is straightforward: UNFPA will provide the technical framework and base content, including guidelines and training materials. YouTube will provide its platform and access to its creator community. Once trained, these creators will become spokespeople for the initiative.

Daniela Guerra, Head of Communications and Responsibility, YouTube Hispanic America, says that participating creators will not receive additional economic incentives. Instead, they will receive an official certificate from the UNFPA that validates their training, along with social recognition.

From the creators' perspective, this alliance offers an opportunity to increase the visibility of the education sector on the platform. Marisol Maldonado, Founder, Estudia con Marisol channel, says that this collaboration can help reduce the gender gaps and discrimination that still exist in educational digital content. The ultimate goal of the alliance is to lay the groundwork for the region's youth to be not just content consumers, but actors capable of transforming their digital environments into safe and constructive spaces.