The Moment We’re In
At a time when young men aged 18 to 23 are showing the least optimism for their futures and the lowest levels of social connection, they are increasingly finding purpose online. 48% of young men ages 18 to 23 say their online lives are more interesting than their offline ones and 1 in 3 spent no time in person with someone outside their household in the prior week (State of American Men, 2023). Meanwhile, AI ‘aggro-rithms’ are serving young boys harmful content within 60 seconds of being online, and they increasingly drive young men towards anti-democratic, harmful content.
- 40% Trust Harmful Content – 40% of young men say they trust one or more pro-violence voices online.
- 2/3 Feel Unseen – 65% of young men feel that quote, “no one really knows me.”
Like never before, there is an urgent need to come together and test new ideas that invite young men to find healthy connection, belonging, and purpose
Our Research
Equimundo and Futures Without Violence partnered with Puddle to take a six-month deep dive into the platforms and online spaces used by young men in the United States, including digital scraping and AI analysis of online male-dominated digital channels and platforms, interviews with young men, moderators and streamers and more.
We uncovered new ways to think about reaching young men online and found that young men are extremely motivated to create deeper relationships (platonic and romantic) but often lack pathways and permission to build these in healthy ways. Currently, violent, misogynistic voices are doing a better job of meeting those needs. Let’s get to work!
What We’re Doing: The LinkUp Lab
Building on over two decades of work with young men, Futures Without Violence and Equimundo are launching LinkUp Lab, an innovation hub testing digital strategies to reach young men online. We seek to turn the tide on harmful cultural influences that condone harm against women and proliferate anti-democratic content. We will advance strategies that offer young men alternative models for mental wellbeing and non-violent relationships, while also promoting positive influences that connect rather than divide.
With partners, the LinkUp Lab is testing, incubating, and scaling ideas across three pathways:
- Click: Capture attention in the places men scroll, search, and stream.
- Connect: Tap into real relationships by working with digital community leaders.
- Care: Redesign online environments to promote healthy relationship skills and positive mental health.
Join Us
We are proud to partner with a number of program developers, researchers, and donors to test solutions to tackle these pressing issues. Current partners include Harmony Labs, Diverting Hate, AMAZE, Puddle, and Young Men Research Project
We are seeking impact investors to support the testing and piloting of these strategies. This is a novel opportunity to fund some of the most innovative work to engage young men as partners in creating a future free from violence. The stakes are high, but the solutions are within reach.
To learn more, contact Jesse Mahler (JMahler@futureswithoutviolence.org).
