Investigative Journalism Bureau and Toronto Star reporters have won the inaugural Mindset Award for Reporting on the Mental Health of Young People for the Generation Distress series.
The 2021 Generation Distress articles reported, in often wrenching detail, stories of struggle, tragedy, resilience and triumph.
Four stories earned the award, which was presented at this year’s Canadian Association of Journalists gala. They were investigations published in the Toronto star that looked into several facets of the youth mental health crisis:
- How a family and community coped with the tragic loss of a gifted 17-year-old and the mental health issues facing young students in Canada;
- How the pandemic has impacted youth in Canada;
- The spiking rates of antidepressant prescriptions for Canadian youth;
- Why the community healing practices and culturally sensitive mental health approaches benefiting First Nations youth remain inaccessible
The journalists who contributed to these stories are Morgan Bocknek, Charlie Buckley, Robert Cribb, Giulia Fiaoni, Declan Keogh, Dr. Radha Kohly, Liam McCoy and Danielle Orr.
Due to the quality of reporting on youth mental health issues, the IJB tied for first place with magazine writer Simon Lewsen and freelance photographer Chloë Ellingson for their feature in The Walrus on mental health issues affecting college students.
For more information on the award, you can see the official press release here.