Teenagers invited to contribute to Canada’s privacy and data protection initiatives

Author Sharlene Gandhi

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) is inviting 13 to 17-year-olds to participate in shaping the country’s digital policy agenda, including privacy challenges that arise from social media and artificial intelligence. 

The inaugural OPC Youth Advisory Council is now accepting applications from young people, seeking seven individuals to join the group and requiring a two-year commitment. 

The OPC is independent of the government. Federally, there was also previously a Digital Youth Advisory Committee dedicated to digital government, but the group does not appear to have reconvened since 2019. 

Few federal bodies have youth advisory councils. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had a Youth Council until March 2025, which also does not appear to have continued under Prime Minister Mark Carney. 

Late last year, the first Canada Youth Internet Governance Forum also took place, with many young people saying they felt excluded from technology policy and legislation despite being considered ‘digital natives’. 

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  • Sharlene Gandhi is the Future of Good editorial fellow on digital transformation.

    Sharlene has been reporting on responsible business, environmental sustainability and technology in the UK and Canada since 2018. She has worked with various organizations during this time, including the Stanford Social Innovation Review, the Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business at Lancaster University, AIGA Eye on Design, Social Enterprise UK and Nature is a Human Right. Sharlene moved to Toronto in early 2023 to join the Future of Good team, where she has been reporting at the intersections of technology, data and social purpose work. Her reporting has spanned several subject areas, including AI policy, cybersecurity, ethical data collection, and technology partnerships between the private, public and third sectors.

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