Smartphone Pledge
There's strength in numbers. Together, we can protect childhood.
The Unplugged Canada parent and caregiver pledge unites families to delay smartphones until at least age 14. The more families in your community who sign, the more social pressures ease, and we shift the culture around when we give our kids their first smartphone.
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Sign the Pledge to Delay Smartphones
By signing this pledge, you commit to delaying smartphone access until your child is at least 14. Basic phones for calls and texts can be used while still following the pledge.
The pledge activates once five families in the same grade and school sign. Unplugged Canada will notify you and share the other parent’s names so you can connect.
Together, families support one another—there’s strength in numbers.
*children’s full names are not required. Initials or nicknames are welcome.
Pledge Guidelines
To sign the pledge, your child must be under 14. You can include all your children on one form by selecting “add another child.”
If your child is not yet in school, choose that option and email us once you know their kindergarten school. If your child is in school, please carefully select their current (and next) school on the form so pledges can be grouped correctly. If a school is missing, email us at info@unpluggedcanada.com to add it.
You only need to sign once per child. At the end of the summer, the pledge will automatically renew until your child is 14. If your child changes schools, just let us know.
At this time, pledges are open to families in Canada only.
The Research Behind the Pledge: The Anxious Generation
In The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt links the rise in teen anxiety and social disconnection to the shift from play-based childhoods to phone-based ones. His research underpins Unplugged Canada’s mission to help families delay smartphones so children can grow up playing, resilient, and deeply connected to their communities.
“Every generation of parents has faced new challenges. One of the biggest right now is how to prevent young kids from being groomed by tech platforms that want to turn them into lifelong customers.
As the former CEO of several health care organizations in Ottawa, including the Youth Services Bureau and the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, I have seen the harm that social media use can have on developing brains and on children’s physical and mental health. As the current CEO of the Canadian Medical Association, I see how false health information damages people and communities.
I want to see governments act to protect our kids. But we have a lot of power as parents too, particularly to shift the norms around when smartphones and social media are introduced to children. As the parent of a young child, I want to protect my son from online harm, of course, but I also want to create space for him to play and connect in the real world — and just be a kid. That’s why I support Unplugged Canada and the important work it does in my community and across the country.”
Alexander MunterCEO Canadian Medical Association
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Social media and apps are designed to encourage addictive behaviors and studies show that using screens for several hours a day can impair children’s cognitive and language abilities, quality of sleep, and may even thin the cortex of their brain. Constant stimulation from addictive apps, along with exposure to harmful social interactions that children’s developing minds are not ready for, can cause cortisol to rise and has led to an explosion of anxiety and depression in adolescents.
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Many other devices let children text and call. Examples include phones like Pinwheel, Fongo, or Wisephone, and smartwatches without internet browsers designed for youth.
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There is no question that for some kids in our communities smartphones are essential medical devices. We are here to support all families, no matter what their circumstances, make the right choices for their kids.
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By helping local families band together, we reduce the social pressure for a smartphone. Once 5 families in the grade have signed, you will be notified that the pledge is in effect!
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You will receive an email from Unplugged within 1 to 2 business days with tips and suggestions on how to rally other parents from your child’s school. If you do not get an email after a couple of days, email us at: info@unpluggedcanada.com
Smartphone Pledge FAQ
Pledge Privacy Policy
Your name (parent/caregiver) will be shared with other caregivers in your child’s grade and school who have also signed the Pledge—but only once the Pledge becomes active. A Pledge becomes active when five families have signed.
Your child’s name and school will never be shared with anyone and will never be posted publicly.
We will celebrate grades and schools with active pledges on our social media platforms.