At the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters in Geneva, nearly 400 young leaders from over 40 countries came together at the Global Model WHO 2025 to raise global awareness about the growing crisis of social isolation. Declaring it a “public health priority shaping our generation’s future,” participants urged governments to recognize the health risks associated with loneliness and to invest in policies that strengthen social connection and mental well-being. Ida Marchese, Director-General of the Global Model WHO 2025, emphasized that while today’s youth live in a digitally connected world, many experience profound social disconnection, calling for renewed efforts to rebuild inclusive and supportive communities.
The event culminated in the adoption of the Global Model WHO Youth Declaration on Social Connection, which calls for national strategies, community-level initiatives, and inclusive digital policies to promote belonging and reduce loneliness. The Global Model WHO is a joint initiative of WHO and the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA), designed to simulate the World Health Assembly and provide young leaders with a platform to debate pressing global health challenges such as mental health, digital health, artificial intelligence, vaccine hesitancy, and migration.
Throughout the four-day event, six youth delegates from each WHO region developed policy ideas inspired by the WHO Commission on Social Connection, which identifies social connectedness as a fundamental yet neglected component of public health. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus encouraged the delegates to take the lessons of connection back to their communities, emphasizing that building stronger human bonds is essential to healthier societies.
WFUNA Secretary-General Aziel Goulandris praised the declaration as a testament to the power of youth diplomacy in shaping global health agendas, stressing that “the world cannot achieve health for all without social health for all.” The discussions echoed findings from the WHO Commission on Social Connection, co-chaired by Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General, and Chido Mpemba, African Union Youth Envoy, which revealed that loneliness affects one in six people worldwide and contributes to over 871,000 deaths annually.
By transforming awareness into advocacy, the young delegates reaffirmed that mental and social health are deeply interconnected, and that fostering empathy, inclusion, and participation is as vital to public health as medical or technological advances. The declaration concluded with a powerful call to action: “By acting with empathy, courage, and intentionality, we can transform isolation into belonging, silence into conversation, and indifference into collective care.”
