practices working together
A youth insight collective
Project Qualia
Beyond Statistics.
Into Experience.
Understanding the lived experiences of young people.
We bring research, story, art, film, and dialogue together so young people’s lived experience can shape the decisions that affect their lives.
The work
- 01Research
- 02Storytelling
- 03Creative Expression
- 04Film & Media
- 05Dialogue & Policy
Our mission
We listen for what numbers alone cannot hold.
Project Qualia closes the gap between lived experience and public understanding. Young people help shape the questions, interpret what we learn, and decide how insight should travel.
Why Qualia?What makes us different
Experience is evidence.
We do not stop at measuring what is happening. We ask what it feels like, what it means, and what should change.
phases in each annual inquiry
communities brought into the work
shared purpose: deeper understanding
The gap
Data can show the pattern.
It cannot tell the whole story.
Young people are often studied, supported, and spoken for without first being heard.
Pressure, loneliness, identity, social media, uncertainty, and the hidden work of appearing okay rarely fit into a single measure. We organize evidence and experience side by side so institutions can respond with greater wisdom.
How we work
What the work
looks like.
Each pillar offers a different way to listen. Together, they create a fuller picture of youth mental wellbeing.
Evidence rooted in experience
01
Research
Surveys, interviews, focus groups, and studies led in partnership with young people reveal the realities of mental health and wellbeing from the inside out.
What We Create
- State of Youth Wellbeing studies
- Annual insight reports
- Youth research fellowships
What changes when young people help decide what gets studied?Open the Research Page
Featured annual project · 2026
The Performance
of Being Okay
2026 / Annual inquiry
An exploration led with young people on emotional masking and the hidden struggles behind “I’m fine.”
Listen at scale
Research
A study designed with young people examines emotional masking, achievement pressure, and the gap between outward performance and inner experience.
The project brings together an original study, anonymous student stories, poetry and photography, a short documentary, and a community roundtable that culminates in practical recommendations for schools and communities.
Open the Full ProjectStories
Experience, in young people’s own words.
Anonymous stories, essays, reflections, and interviews that add human context to the patterns.
Enter the story collectionThe Question Wall
What is something adults misunderstand about being a teenager?
Answer anonymously. Read what others are saying. Begin by listening.
Add your voiceFor you
Insight becomes useful when it reaches the people who can act on it.
StudentsWhat are young people experiencing right now?→Parents & CaregiversWhat can parents learn from young people’s experiences?→Teachers & EducatorsWhat do students wish educators knew?→School LeadersHow can schools better understand student experience?→Mental Health ProfessionalsWhat can lived experience teach us?→ResearchersHow can young people become partners in research?→Policymakers & AdvocatesWhat should decision-makers know?→Media & JournalistsHow can youth experiences be represented accurately?→
Explore all audiences Begin with listening