Educational institutions are not only centers of knowledge but critical spaces for fostering socioemotional skills, awareness, and long-term well-being. With children and adolescents spending much of their formative years in schools, these systems are uniquely positioned to influence societal attitudes toward mental health and provide early, life-changing skills and support.

Yet across the globe, too many mental health struggles among youth go unnoticed, undiagnosed, and untreated due to persisting stigma, inadequate support systems, and limited mental health literacy.

We must recognize that education is one of the most powerful tools to break this silence — to create awareness, encourage prevention, and ensure that no mental illness goes unnoticed.

Equally important is ensuring that schools remain safe, inclusive, and dignified environments for all students. Exposure to peer violence, discrimination, and exclusion — whether in classrooms or online — has a profound and lasting impact on mental health. Every learner has the right to feel protected, respected, and supported in their educational journey and personal growth from early childhood development through to adolescence and beyond..

We recommend the global community and UN member states to:

• Integrate age-appropriate mental health education and socioemotional learning into formal and non-formal education from an early age, promoting emotional intelligence, stigma reduction, and help-seeking behaviors.
• Ensure systematic training for teachers, school staff and adults working with young people – including educators, community leaders, and youth workers – to identify early signs of mental health distress and respond with sensitivity and appropriate support, supported by clear referral pathways. Equally, prioritize the mental well-being of educators themselves by providing access to psychosocial support and promoting healthy, sustainable working conditions.
• Promote early childhood education and provide targeted support for young parents, recognizing the critical role of early development in long-term mental well-being.
• Enhance peer awareness by teaching students to recognize early signs of mental health issues in one another and respond appropriately by connecting with trusted support systems.
• Fund and incorporate mental health workshops into school curricula to provide students with practical tools for emotional well-being and resilience.
• Guarantee access to qualified school-based mental health professionals, and explore innovative models such as mobile counselling services where capacity is limited.
• Protect children and young people from all forms of violence, bullying, and psychological harm in school settings, through policies that uphold dignity, safety, and inclusion.
• Support youth-led mental health initiatives within educational facilities/systems to build leadership, ownership, and community-based support.
• Monitor and evaluate mental health initiatives to ensure effectiveness and adequate responsiveness to student needs. 
• Ensure that mental health education, awareness, and support services are accessible to out-of-school youth, including NEETs (young people Not in Education, Employment, or Training) and those engaged in non-formal education, recognizing their heightened vulnerability and right to well-being.

Schools must be empowered not only as places of learning, but as foundations for well-being. To build a future where mental health is protected, understood, and prioritized, education systems must become proactive platforms of prevention, support, and hope.