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Massive Online Public Co-Design—Every Thread Tells a StoryWe acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which we work, and pay our respects to the Elders, past and present. The ALIVE National Centre for Mental Health Research Translation is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Special Initiative in Mental Health GNT2002047 and receives funding from the Medical Research Future Fund for research activities and flagship projects..Phase 3 Consensus Statement The Middle Horizon 2025: Implementation Actions for Pathways of People aged 16-25 years old Message
2The cover of this Phase 3 Consensus Statement is the virtual net created from the public co-designmeetings held from January-March 2025 with people who were between the ages of 16 to 25 years old. Itshows the rich, many and varied threads that bring us all together in communities in terms of diversity andstory.The virtual net builds on what we created in 2024 at the ALIVE National Centre Annual Symposium HolisticFormations. At the Symposium we created a Call to Action -- Casting the Net for What Matters and ForWhom? It grew from our collective input and the creation of a net together that was guided by Wiradjurifibre artist Jessika Spencer. The actions for the Casting Net Call can be read here.https://alivenetwork.com.au/casting-the-net-for-what-matters-for-whom/Every thread on the cover has been selected by someone who is the future of our communities. The threadsrepresent people who took the time to come to co-design, without necessarily knowing the other people inthe room, and who were brave to join and come and talk about what matters for people who are agedbetween 16 to 25 years old. These Consensus Statements share the threads about priorities in mental healthresearch, what to improve and what social determinants and social issues that need to be embedded innew models of care and approaches to supporting mental health and wellbeing.We will keep casting the net for what matters with these Consensus Statements, and we hope that you too can do the same.ABOUT THE NET
“ORANGE reminds me of the sun and its radiation of light.”“BROWN because the week hasn’t been fun.”“YELLOW like the sun.” YELLOW to represent transition and navigating that. YELLOW is a happy colour.”“GREEN is connection to nature, in my name “sage green” like a frog it blends in, but step back and it is different in the environment and unique. “RED is my favourite colour, the colour of a rose and love. A whole representation of red.”“PINK makes me happy reminds me of childhood.” “PINK is nurturing, love and compassion.” “BLUE reminds me of the ocean, I like the squiggly line. BLUE is surfing, I find peace in the water and waves, calm and relaxing, standing still. BLUE is summer, the ocean and swimming. It helps me to have fun and relax. BLUE is the ocean and clears my head.”“DARK BLUE is chaotic but calm.”“PURPLE echoes how I interact with other people and the friendships that I make. PURPLE seems to connect to people. PURPLE is mystery and magic. PURPLE is a mix of red and blue. Red for getting things done and being an energetic person and blue to calm down and connect.”—EVERY THREAD TELLS A STORY3
ContentsNOTE on language The ALIVE National Centre Y-LEAGABOUT the Phase 3 Consensus StatementWHO took partHOW the Phase 3 Consensus Statement was co-created WHAT IS IN THE POCKET MAP 2025 EDITION The ELEVEN priority topics for people aged 16-25 years oldWHAT’S INSIDE THE PHASE THREE CONSENSUS STATEMENT4
Palmer VJ, Bibb J, Tjung C, Orcher P, Lee A, Foxcroft A, Banfield M, and The Co-Design Living Labs Network ALIVE National Centre. 2025. A massive online public co-designproject to co-create the Phase 3 Consensus Statement – The Middle Horizon 2025 Pathways of people aged 16 to 25 years old and Implementation Actions. The ALIVE National Centre for Mental Health Research Translation: Melbourne, Australia.NOTE on languageThis Statement preserves the language used by people in the age ranges of 16 to 25 years old who self-identify as living with mental ill-health, or as carers, family or kinship group members, or with havingexperience of being both. Fifty-one people contributed priorities either by survey (n=39), interview (n=5) orby completing emotion mapping (n=7) and 37 took part in public co-design online. Everything in this Phase3 Consensus Statement reflects the priorities of young people who shared their lived-expertise and broughtthe threads together.The research team included mental health lived-experience researchers, an Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander co-design researcher, and interdisciplinary researchers from participatory design, visualdesign, music therapy and mental health primary care research.In this Consensus Statement you will see the terms young people living with mental ill-health, youngpeople who identify as carers, family or kin members are used, alongside young people with experience ofboth and consumer, carer and consumer and carer to reflect experiences of both. These terms reflect howyoung people self-identified when they signed up to the ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-ExperiencePriorities Study (2024) or to public co-design (2025). We have retained these naming conventions in thequotes used and sometimes changed illness in quotations to ill-health for consistency in language use.5SuggestedCitation
The ALIVE National Centre Y-LEAGThis document has been reviewed by the ALIVE National Centre Youth Lived-ExperienceAdvisory Group (Y-LEAG) who meet quarterly to advise on young people-focused projects inthe National Centre. The Y-LEAG will continue to play a role in the development of theNational Roadmap and future ideas to share the Pathways for People aged 16-25 years oldoutlined within this Consensus Statement.Thank you ! To the Y-LEAG members who reviewed this Statement --- Grace Read ------ Jeanette Chan ------ Kushagra Rathore ------ Lee Tong ------ Zac Chu ---Thank you to past members of the Youth Lived-Experience Advisory Group--- Kisanet Tesfu ---6
First off, we’d like to say, “thanks!”Thank you for taking the time toread this and especially if you wereone of the 51 people who sharedyour priorities in the ANU-ALIVENational Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study for2024. Or, if you one of the 37 co-designers who contributed tothese pathways of people aged 16to 25 years old. The priorities studywas approved by ANU HumanResearch Ethics Committee(Protocol H/2024/0495) and publicco-design by The University ofMelbourne (Project ID: 31095).The Phase 3 Consensus Statement– The Middle Horizon Pathways ofYoung People 16-25 years old andImplementation Actions bringstogether voices of young peopleliving with mental ill-health, andcarers, family or kinship groupmembers supporting people aged16 to 25 years old, and people whohave both experiences, to sharepriorities and implementationactions. We thank the AustralianNational University for partneringon this study.The Consensus Statements areused to set research goals in the co-designed ALIVE National CentreRoadmap for Mental HealthResearch Translation. The Roadmapis used to establish integratedknowledge translation strategies,goals, activities and targets.ABOUTThe Phase 3 Consensus Statement & Who Took PartThe goals, strategies andtargets of the Centre will beupdated annually and furtheras Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander communities co-design paths for what matters,and more priority populationspriorities are gathered and co-designed in the Roadmap.This Consensus Statement setsthe course of the pathways ofpeople in the ages of 16 to 25years old within the Centre’sresearch efforts. It does notreflect all the diversity ofAustralia and First Nationscommunities; there must belocal efforts that are focusedon implementation levers, andstrategies formed inconjunction with thesepathways.7
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Priorities were gathered from people aged 16 to 25 years old in the ANU-ALIVE Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study. The study gave people the choice to contribute via survey questions, an online or telephone interview (with the option to use a photo prompt) or to conduct emotion mapping of previous priorities. Following our analysis of the 2024 contributions, we identified eleven priority topics of difference for people 16 to 25 years. We also used emotion mapping to check on the connections with the priority topics previously shared in the original Annual Surveys. The implementation actions were co-created in public co-design.The Consensus Statements share the priority topics, and the priorities and implementation actions from 88 people aged 16 to 25 years who live with mental ill-health, or who identify as carer, family and kinship group members and some people with both experiences.HOWThe Phase 3 Consensus Statementwas co-created “You know, it’s like, we can't put you on medication because you're young. We can't do this because you're young. We can't diagnose you to this because you're young…”(25 y/o Transgender Man, Consumer and Carer Experiences Interview 2024) 9
The Use of Yellow | What does it mean?The yellow represents the priorities that people between 16 to 25 years of age shared strong feelings about. It represents consensus about the importance of these topics. The combined colours in icons within the Pocket Map (over the page) form a visual representation of those agreements. The colours depict the consensus about priorities for mental health research, care improvements needed and social determinants across each of the age groups and across the three surveys. These priority topics and touch points have been created into an emotion board to be used for policy change, the development of an experiential framework to guide what matters and how to measure experiences of care and to co create these Consensus Statements.Touch Points | EncountersThe feelings people shared from emotion mapping are called touch points. These are the encounters with services, organisations or staff, processes of care, and here, with priorities that shape experience in good, not so good and uncertain ways. In experience co-design, understanding touch points that are shared in emotion mapping help to identify areas for change. These feelings are also used to create an experiential framework to support improved mental health care experiences. and the regeneration of the mental healthcare ecosystem.Emotion Mapping | PrioritisationEmotion mapping involved taking 23 priority topics that were shared in the 2022 and 2023 Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Surveys by 16- to 25-year-olds to confirm what priorities people still felt strongly about.The connections and feelings that were shared have helped to shape the picture on what areas the ALIVE National Centre can amplify, the things that are holding implementation back and what implementation actions could help to regenerate the mental health care ecosystem. The WHATForming Consensus10
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The WHATImplementation Actions to Translational Goals12“The world is too FASTI wish it would SLOW DOWN.”(Co-Designer 2025)
MENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH Prevention of mental ill-health and to reduce stigmaEducation of professionals and communityNeurodivergenceLived-Experience in all aspects of research and the Workplace These priorities are based on: (a) priority topics that were shared in the 2024 survey (n=39 people) (b) mapping what people shared online facilitated interviews to existing and new priority topics (n=5 people); (c) an analysis of emotion mapping responses to previous priority topics from 2022-23 (n=7 people); and, (d) public co-design of what the ALIVE National Centre can amplify, what’s holding implementation back and what actions can be taken (n=37 people).13
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Story-sharing community groups where people feel safe to speak.• Promote training for students in school to de-stigmatisemental health.• Story-sharing spaces—something that could be held after school or during school.What's holding implementation back?• Not addressing problems before they escalate.• Only starting to talk about mental health in high school. It is important to teach skills at the time or before you need to be using them regularly – in primary school. • Lack of communication between schools and community mental health services.• There is definitely a need for more education about mental health.• Safe places in schools. Feasibility of an abuse reporting system being made available in schools and young people aware of it and able to access freely. • It would be good for schools to be connected with mental health organisations and for there to be more of a holistic, community-based approach towards providing preventative mental health care.• Learn how to manage those emotions, so it won't come to a point wherein legal authorities are involved >> which could impact the person's ability to get work or acquire housing in the future, further impacting their mental health.• Alter mental health education to be less clinical and include different perspectives.IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- PREVENTION --14Prevention
"This would include educators and school staff being aware of mental health, intergenerational trauma, trauma more generally, and how it may impact students. This would also be based on the demographics of the school and, more generally, on being aware of neurodivergence, identity, and various intersectionalities." (23 y/o, Non-binary person, Consumer,Public Co-Design 2025)“”“”15The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-DesignA lot of youth mental health is seen as early intervention but a lot of people are already far in their journeys [by the time they are seen] because of wait times and complexity. [Then they are] treated in services designed for early intervention." (24 y/o, Non-binary Person, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• It is helpful for everyone to know something about mental health.• There should be mental health talks in school and non-clinical education on how to support young people. • Moving away from clinical perspectives and more education for social and emotional wellbeing. • Workshops in schools to learn about intersectionality and cultural diversity in understanding mental health. What's holding implementation back?• There is not enough information about non-medical services and programs that health professionals can refer young people to. • Existing education about mental health for schools and community is very clinical and doesn't consider a holistic approach or non-clinical ways of thinking about it.• There are limitations around which schools you can access to provide mental health education in; there is not a combined approach. IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE-- EDUCATION OF PROFESSIONALSAND COMMUNITY --16Education of Professionals & Community • Educating current parents or carers about mental health and wellbeing.• A youth-informed approach to educational resources to be integrated in curriculum.• Education programs for health professionals around holistic understandings of mental health and the importance of treatment that is not just medication.• Presentations or educational workshops about mental health for different cultural communities.
“”"Training on mental health awareness and first aid for people working in the child protection sector - e.g. carers, case workers. First at onboarding, then annual refreshers." (21 y/o Woman, Consumer and Carer of Sibling, Emotion Mapping 2024)“”17"A major gap is in schools...Educators might not be aware of the signs of trauma, so it is important for teachers to be educated on mental health signs. This gap could be filled, and schools could become more supportive environments." (18 y/o Man, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Allowing for different learning styles in classroom settings can mean you can step out when you feel overwhelmed and it’s okay.• Normalising accessing mental health support when you don't have a diagnosis• Educating mental health professionals on the difference between neurodivergence and mental health symptoms and experiences. What's holding implementation back?• It is difficult to access support if you are neurodivergentunless you have an official diagnosis.• Services will work with my mental health but not my neurodivergence and vice versa. It's left up to me to make both the treatments work for me. • Creating sensory safe spaces for neurodiverse students can positively impact engagement in learning environments.• Research about the intersection between neurodivergence and mental health. • Research into how best to support people with both mental health needs and neurodivergence.IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- NEURODIVERGENCE --18Neurodivergence
"I didn’t have the means to understand how my life was different from my friends...It was the same thing with autism and ADHD—I didn’t understand why I was understanding relationships differently." (24 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)””””“Making going to a school counsellor less daunting can help students feel more open about sharing different aspects of their lives I would also say creating sensory safespaces for neurodiverse students can positively impact engagement in learning environments. “ (20y/o, Woman, Consumer and Carer of Sibling, Emotion Mapping 2024)””"Neurodivergence intersects with mental health. When I went through the system this wasn't recognised as it should have been. It made it harder for me to recover. There should be more of an understanding...about neurodivergence... My symptoms will look similar [but] I'm hoping that [the doctor] can tell them apart because they're different internally. Sometimes that difference is not respected." (24 y/oNon-binary person, Consumer, Public Co-design 2025)19The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Sharing of lived-experience in all workplaces.• Benefits of having lived-experience.• Mental health training in workplaces.• Pathways for understanding anti-stigma and discrimination policies in the workplace. What's holding implementation back?• Co-workers and corporate culture are not inclusive.• Stigma that people with mental health needs can't do their job. • Lack of awareness around mental health and how workplaces can support people with mental health needs.• Increase awareness and understanding in workplaces, good for learning to draw boundaries in the workplace.• Lived-experience support roles for people to share their personal experiences with.• Training for employers about mental health and how to support young people.• Diverse and authentic lived-experience inclusion, engagement and methods for research agenda and conduct.IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- LIVED-EXPERIENCE IN ALL ASPECTS OF RESEARCH AND WITHIN THE WORKPLACE --20Lived-Experience in all Aspects of Research and within the Workplace
"It's so hard to find a job with co-workers who understand because the corporate/work culture is not very inclusive." (24 y/o Woman, Consumer, Emotion Mapping 2024)””””"Not having workplace supports and comfort sharing, makes a big difference." (23 y/o, Man, Consumer Emotion Mapping 2024)””"There's fear of stigma that holds me back when I tell my boss I need to go for my psychologist appointment. Instead, I still say that I go for a doctor's appointment. I don't want to be seen as not able to do my job with my mental health."(22 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)21The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
The WHATImplementation Actions to Translational Goals22
MENTALHEALTH CARE IMPROVEMENTSTherapeutic pathsPeer support models Trauma (reducing medical and compound trauma) These priorities are based on: (a) priority topics that were shared in the 2024 survey (n=39 people) (b) mapping what people shared online facilitated interviews to existing and new priority topics (n=5 people); (c) an analysis of emotion mapping responses to previous priority topics from 2022-23 (n=7 people); and, (d) public co-design of what the ALIVE National Centre can amplify, what’s holding implementation back and what actions can be taken (n=37 people).23
• Create models that also look on a more macro scale because everything around us impacts our mental health (for example, access to health care, access to education, cost of living, housing, global politics, peer groups).• Ways to make therapy more effective for adolescents.• Therapy techniques. Digital therapy.• Efficacy of Online Based Therapy/Mental Health Apps.• How to increase engagement/reduce barriers to treatment. • Curative or research on helping people long term with the issues.• Research into non-clinical alternatives to treatment. What are the barriers to non-clinical treatment options for young people?IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- THERAPEUTIC PATHS --What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Creative approaches so people can feel therapy is more accessible. • Peer-to-peer groups so young people can talk to other young people.• Tips for improving mental health.• Digital education and bridging the gap in digital literacy.• Alternatives to traditional, medical model treatments.• Scalable mental health treatment.What's holding implementation back?• Not having access to and autonomy over your own health record and information when you turn 16 years old. • Service mapping and referrals…why does no one know what they're referring to?• Not having autonomy or options in my own treatment.• It is annoying and costly to shop around for psychologists and community services. Now that I am in my 20s, I still need something that is for younger people but that meets my needs at this age I am now, not as a teenager.24Therapeutic Paths
"Make it less invasive, asking permission, and not forcing things on people." (19 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)”””””"Transition [between child and adult services] would be less uncomfortable when the professionals already know who you are and your history before they meet you." (19 y/o Non-binary person, Consumer and Carer, Public Co-Design 2025)”25“The one stop shop is another one I hear a lot, but it's not a one stop. It's like, come in, see all these brochures that offer services that you've already tried.” (25 y/o, Transgender Man, Interview Consumer and Carer 2024)The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
• Peer support services in low socio-economic areas.• Peer led intervention for early teens.• Peer workers designing and managing services.• Youth mental health research led by young people with lived experience.IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- PEER SUPPORT MODELS --What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Education programs for the peer workforce.• Support programs for existing peer workers. • Community based options—I prefer spending time in nature than in a gym. Nature based programs in the community and that are accessible. What's holding implementation back?• There is a lack of support and training for young people who are or who want to become peer workers• Issues around youth mental health are often championed by people who are not young people. There is often an absence of young people.26Peer-to-Peer Support Models
””””"I think, as we get older like, especially like during our adolescence. We’re kind of like trying to like explore a little bit more and get a little bit distance from our family and more towards our peers. But I think in that sense it’s still really important to have that relationship with your family, because (or your primary caregivers and stuff), because your peers are also growing up with you, and they can’t offer you everything." (20 y/o Woman, Consumer, Interview 2024)27"It is important to consider that peer work [is] emotionally demanding too. For people to take on more responsibility there should be an option for supports." (19 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)””“How to reorientate the workforce to support young people to work in peer support roles and support roles particularly in public services organisations that are not youth oriented and are hesitant to employ young people in these professional roles.” (25 y/o, Woman, Consumer, Survey 2024)The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Trauma-informed training for health professionals.• Engaging people with disabilities to see how the sector can better identify those needing help and cater to their needs.• The impact of fostering and separation of siblings on mental health, separate from trauma impacts.What's holding implementation back?• We know it exists but much not many interventions exist to address intergenerational trauma it seems.• A lack of communication between health services which means you have to re-tell your story every time you visit a mental health service.• There was little or minimised trauma-informed care practices.• Understanding different susceptibility including intergenerational trauma, family history.• Stronger support for children and young people caught in the middle of 'custody battles’ (for example, potential biological reunification or parent separation).• It's also important to have support for parents (whether that’s more intensive in dealing with their mental ill-health or general education on parenting in modern society).IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- REDUCING MEDICAL AND COMPOUND TRAUMA --28Trauma: Reducing Medical and Compound
””"It was through the school counsellor that I found I was experiencing emotional abuse. Everyone was treated the same [in my community] and it was normalised. Most immigrant parents have their own trauma, and it gets projected onto kids. It is a cycle." (24 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)””"Domestic violence shouldn't happen to begin with. Our priorities shouldn't be about overcoming trauma, they should be about working within the community to make sure it doesn't happen at all, or isn't as bad, and ensuring there are places to go for support."(22 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)29””“It was hard, and there was no acknowledgement of the strength of that person, but it was more of how the therapist should want to address the issue, rather than allowing the person, the client, to address the issue themselves.” (24 y/o, Consumer and Carer Non-Binary Trans Man, Interview 2024)The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
The WHATImplementation Actions to Translational Goals30
SOCIAL DETERMINANTS/ \SOCIAL ISSUESImpacts of StigmaAccessible and Affordable Services Societal ImpactsCultural and Community Responsiveness These priorities are based on: (a) priority topics that were shared in the 2024 survey (n=39 people) (b) mapping what people shared online facilitated interviews to existing and new priority topics (n=5 people); (c) an analysis of emotion mapping responses to previous priority topics from 2022-23 (n=7 people); and, (d) public co-design of what the ALIVE National Centre can amplify, what’s holding implementation back and what actions can be taken (n=37 people).31
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Videos about people’s stories and experiences will help others not to judge.• Mental health education for communities.• Education for teachers about how to support students in school.• Education for kids around safe social media use.• Education programs and more conversations for parents around mental health would be amazing.What's holding implementation back?• Judgement in the online space.• Pain in asking for help, particularly when you grow up in a family without the language to express that and it might be challenging to get support.• Limited access to counsellors or adults you can trust in school.• Stigma about medication.• Our queer identity can be pathologised by mental health services. • Perceived risks of social media to our mental health.• How to break stigma of medication.• Not repeating your story every time you access support in the public system. • Would be good if someone can have access to choose what can be seen in a health record. Some people may not use health records because they may think that they get judged or feel isolated within their own workplace.32Impacts of StigmaIMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- STIGMA --
””“It is meant to help you, but people say, "Whyare you medicated for this?" or judge you for it, which makes you feel really bad." (22 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)””””"People are judged for mental health conditions, and kids at school jokeabout it. They don't understand that people are going through different things." (16 y/o Woman, Consumer, PublicCo-Design 2025)33“ Labels are for jars not people."(25 y/o, Transgender Man, Consumer and Carer, Interview 2024)””“If you don't feel like you have rights or if you feel like other people deserve more rights than you do, that can heavily impact your self-worth and willingness to seek helpstrongly impacts mental health, particularly when it comes to accessing culturally appropriate supports." (21 y/o, Consumer and Carer of a Sibling, Emotion Mapping 2024)The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Promote free community groups and information about mental health to young people – when people know what is available it is more accessible.• Ensuring [poverty and housing insecurity] needs are met as a priority in episodes of care.• Digital health services that young people can already access.What's holding implementation back?• Multiple 'first appointments' to find a mental health provider who meets the unique needs of a young person which is expensive and time consuming. • Costly appointments just to get a prescription for medication. • There are not enough psychologists that meet individual needs for example, location, cultural background, trauma-informed. • Mental health professionals can often resort to short-term therapies (e.g., solution focused therapies) which do not address underlying issues including intergenerational trauma.• Limited services in rural and remote areas. • Using co-design to evaluate the fit of community mental health services for meeting the needs of young people early on, not at the end.• A youth specific lived-experience framework so there is a clear shift towards youth led designed solutions to accessibility issues. • Having options to reduce the cost of living and housing rentals.34Accessible and Affordable ServicesIMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE-- ACCESSIBLE AND AFFORDABLE SERVICES --
”"It is hard to find a psychologist who is able to treat complexity and tick all the boxes" (22 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)”I would go to this place’, but they're only open between 9 and 2, every…third week or whatever.” (25 y/o, Transgender Man, Consumer and Carer, Interview 2024)””””"It is annoying and costly to shop around for psychologists and community services. Now I'm in my 20s, I still need something that is for young people but meeting my needs as the age I am now, not as a teenager." (22 y/o Man, Consumer and Carer, Public Co-Design 2025)35The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• How parents living with mental ill-health can impact child mental health.• MindMap in the Australian Capital Territory and AskIzzy can be helpful for finding different, matched services near you. • How to develop younger people’s digital literacy and awareness of using social media for the good things.What's holding implementation back?• The mental health system is treating 'problems' but not addressing the root causes of them, which is related to social and societal pressures. • To take a more holistic approach to mental health, we would have to include the things that already exist.• Having that form of connection…because I think a lot of young people, especially with digital media, are really isolated.• Acknowledge the systemic prevalence of domestic violence.• Establish the feasibility and effectiveness of community groups as a means of reducing young people’s feeling of loneliness.• Be cautious of how to interpret or understand the impacts of social media and technology.• Discounted prices or free trams and e-scooters or bikes to help people to get to places. IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE-- SOCIETAL IMPACTS --36Societal Impacts
””37"It feels overwhelming—the mental health system is already overwhelmed and tricky to navigate. As a consumer, it can feel overwhelming." (22 y/o Woman, Consumer, Public Co-Design 2025)“Efficacy of education on poor mental health signs/ symptoms via tv and social media ads to enable people to helpothers.” (21 y/o Female, Consumer and Carer of Sibling, Emotion Mapping 2024)””””“It’s about regulating…educatingyoung people on how to use social media because like some people, some young people can really find that connection with other people.” (20 y/o Woman, Consumer, Interview 2024) The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
What could the ALIVE National Centre amplify?• Promote youth focused community groups and activities because adult programs can be intimidating.• A more collective approach to mental health in culturally and linguistically diverse communities.• Incorporation of cultural background can make people feel heard >> particularly having people of colour and First Nations voices in government.• Safe places and relationships outside of families.What's holding implementation back?• Families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds often don't have enough knowledge about mental health.• There is a lack of communication between schools and the broader community about what is happening for students.• There are not enough community spaces or community-based programs that are youth specific and low cost. • Availability of translators.• Have found it hard to find people to trust and make friends and people to talk about my experiences.IMPLEMENTATION ACTIONS FOR RESEARCH, POLICY AND PRACTICE -- CULTURAL AND COMMUNITY RESPONSIVENESS --• Safe household environments is especially important with the rise domestic and family violence.• Consultation with community leaders and faith leaders to explore how we can better engage with specific cultural groups. • Connection to cultural background.• Cultural diversity should be incorporated in all contexts, important to train people in different industries (not only people who are working with vulnerable individuals).• Community programs/activities that target young people without pressure to share your experience.• Dedicated support services and networks for caregivers.• Research into community third spaces and for young people and barriers to accessing these.38Cultural and Community Responsiveness
"Mental health is not just one person's problem, it is everyone's problem in the community." (19 y/o, Non-binary, Consumer and Carer, Public Co-Design 2025) ””””39The more we celebrate diversity, the more inclusive our society will be. This can heavily impact young people during their identity formation years (particularly by reducing feelings of shame and increasing feelings of belonging).” (20 y/o, Woman, Consumer and Carer of Sibling, Emotion Mapping 2024)””"Culture has had an impact on my mental health; what can and can't you do/say.(23 y/o, Man, Consumer, Emotion Mapping 2024)The ANU-ALIVE National Annual Lived-Experience Priorities Study 2024 & Public Co-Design
The Phase 3 Consensus Statement “The Middle Horizon Implementation Actions and Pathways forPeople Aged 16 to 25 years old” is used to guide the development of research goals and translationalstrategies within the ALIVE National Centre. We encourage all researchers to use the implementationactions in their research and to meet the priorities of people most impacted in research andtranslation activities.You can use the Consensus Statements that the ALIVE National Centre develops to:• Increase the understanding of what people aged 16 to 25 years want in research, mental healthand preventive care and support for the future;• Act on these priorities in policy and practices within service organisations;• Grow research-responsive agendas within grant proposals, funding calls and implementationresearch, where people with lived-experience of mental ill-health and carer, family and kinshipgroup members are decision-makers and active members of research, policy and practice teams;• Support the implementation and translation of innovations and models of care that addressthe priorities of people most impacted, and which move beyond single solutions, and single issuefocused approaches;• Create measures centred on what matters for people with lived-experience of mental ill-healthand carer, family and kinship groups supporting people that are driven by lived-experienceresearchers.40HOW TO USE THE PHASE 3 CONSENSUS STATEMENTS
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