KarunaNews Story

In Greystones, County Wicklow, Ireland, community members are taking youth mental health into their own hands -- with an astoundingly simple yet consensus-driven solution. In May 2023, the town of Greystones launched a 'no smartphone code'. Steered by local parents and headteachers, this initiative helps safeguard children's mental health by countering peer pressure on smartphone ownership. Now, as Ireland's government greenlights school smartphone bans, Greystones serves as a strategical blueprint, encouraging face-to-face interactions and preserving youths' innocence and childhood. Eight months in, Greystones has found the ban refreshingly simple. Even as some claim this demonizes technology, Greystones has found global support.