Utah has a youth mental health crisis. Meet the young leaders dedicated to saving their peers’ lives and eliminating stigma.

In Utah, suicide is the leading cause of death for those between 10 and 24. We are among the states with the highest rates of youth mental health disorders, and we have the highest prevalence of youth with untreated mental health needs.

There’s also a stigma that impacts our youth’s ability to speak freely about mental health. In fact, more than half of Utah children aged 3 to 17 who have a mental or behavioral health condition don’t receive treatment, The Tribune reported recently.

Amid this crisis, young Utahns are finding creative ways to save lives through connection, community, conversation and more.

Several of these young leaders — some joined by a parent or trusted advisor — spoke with The Tribune about the work they do, why they do it and their advice for other young Utahns looking to get involved in mental health work. They also shared their story in their own words, via a format they all know well: social media. To protect their privacy, participants under 18 are identified only by their first names.

Beginning today, I’ll post two interviews a week for the next few weeks. I’ll update this page, but you can also find them here.

These stories feature real-life Utahns who speak candidly about the challenges and impacts of confronting their mental health, as well as their peers’. They also feature solutions. I encourage you to read and share them with young Utahns in your life who might feel self-conscious about their journey with mental health or who are looking to help their peers.

• Encircle offered him a community as a young, queer Utahn. Now he’s paying it forward.

• How one BYU student is helping her peers combat perfectionism and other mental health challenges

• Working with horses helped her find her voice. Now she’s helping other young women in Utah do the same.

• What one Utah student learned in Hope Squad helped her save a friend’s life

• Helping young Utahns with their mental health ‘put the power back’ in her story

• How one young Utahn is helping youth who have experienced homelessness improve their mental health

• Therapy, less screen time and ‘changing playgrounds’ helped one young Utahn improve her mental health

• Advocating for herself — and now for other students — helped one young Utahn overcome ‘crippling’ anxiety

• Amid a youth mental health crisis, one Utah teen is working to get a counselor in every school

This project fits into a larger goal of The Tribune to engage with and amplify younger Utahns’ voices. I’m grateful to The Solutions Journalism Network for its support and to the young leaders who bravely shared their stories.

The Salt Lake Tribune is committed to creating a space where Utahns can share ideas, perspectives and solutions that move our state forward. We rely on your insight to do this. Find out how to share your opinion here, and email us at voices@sltrib.com.