Meghan Markle Steps Out in Geneva to Promote Safer Online Spaces, Urges Global Community to Take Action in Powerful Speech

Stephanie Petit, Toria Sheffield, Simon PerrySun, May 17, 2026 at 9:00 PM UTC

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Meghan Markle speaks in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 17, 2026
Credit: Baz Ratner -

Meghan Markle traveled solo to Switzerland this weekend to unveil the Lost Screen Memorial in Geneva

The exhibition promoting safer online spaces was previously unveiled in New York City and Los Angeles

During her remarks, Meghan urged the global community to view dangerous digital spaces as "a public health issue"

Meghan Markle is in Switzerland to send a global message about safer digital spaces.

The Duchess of Sussex, 44, stepped out in Geneva on Sunday, May 17, for an event debuting the Lost Screen Memorial in Geneva's Place des Nations, ahead of the opening of the 79th World Health Assembly.

She was joined there by World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (whom she previously joined on a trip to Jordan with Prince Harry earlier this year), global health leaders and families affected by online harm to see the illumination of 50 lightboxes, each displaying the lock screen image of a child who lost their life as a result of online violence and digital harm.

At the ceremony, Meghan paid tribute to the children remembered in the installation and underscored the urgent need for stronger global protections for children online.

Meghan Markle at the inauguration of The Lost Screen Memorial in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 17, 2026
Credit: CYRIL ZINGARO/EPA/Shutterstock

She began her speech by stating that safe online spaces are “not simply a technology issue,” but a “public health issue.”

“Behind me stands The Lost Screen Memorial,” she continued, referencing the photos and names of 50 children who died by suicide as a result of online bullying and digital harm.

“Each name belonged to a child who was loved beyond measure. A child whose laughter once filled a kitchen. Whose shoes once waited by a front door. Whose future once felt limitless,” she said.

“Now their faces ask the world questions we can no longer avoid: How many more millions of children will be harmed by products that, while innovative, are still designed without sufficient safeguards?” Meghan asked the crowd.

Meghan Markle speaks at the inauguration of The Lost Screen Memorial in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 17, 2026
Credit: CYRIL ZINGARO/EPA/Shutterstock

The Duchess of Sussex went on to compare the dangers of online spaces to other widely recognized public safety concerns, noting that governments and policymakers have long intervened to protect children in those other areas.

“We did not tell parents to create their own seatbelts. We did not ask children to test unsafe medicine. We did not shrug at poisoned water or defective toys and call it the price of progress," she said. "We acted. And now the world must act again."

She urged the global community to take action, stating that the threat to children and families is growing stronger by the day, especially due to the nature of artificial intelligence (AI).

“Across lived experience, court cases, authoritative medical and media journals, and testimony from families, a clear and urgent picture is emerging,” she said. “At the same time, advancing technologies, such as AI, are not just repeating past mistakes — they are accelerating and amplifying them.”

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Meghan Markle at inauguration of The Lost Screen Memorial in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 17, 2026
Credit: Baz Ratner

“The risks are compounding,” she added.

Meghan concluded her speech on a note of hope, insisting that “these outcomes are not inevitable.”

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“Speak up. Demand better from the platforms shaping our children's lives. Be an example in your own social media use of how to be intentional in every like, comment, post, and share. Hold your community to the same standard,” she said.

She continued: “Support laws and leaders committed to child safety by design, transparency and accountability online. Write to your elected representatives. Ask what they are doing to protect children in digital spaces.”

“Because when enough voices refuse to accept harm as the cost of connection, change becomes inevitable,” Meghan added.

The 'Lost Screen Memorial' installation in Los Angeles on Feb. 13, 2026
Credit: CYRIL ZINGARO/EPA/Shutterstock

Amy Neville, an online child safety advocate whose son Alexander is among those in the exhibition, also addressed guests.

The memorial, which will be displayed in Geneva through May 22, was created by Meghan and Prince Harry's Archewell Philanthropies, in partnership with The Parents' Network. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex previously unveiled the exhibit in New York City in April 2025 as part of the No Child Lost to Social Media campaign.

There, Meghan told reporters, "These are families that we have been working with for several years. No matter how polarized the world is, or what people may or may not agree on, one thing that we can all agree on is that our children should be safe. All of our children should be safe, and I think tonight, all of these stories solidify that."

Prince Harry, 41, added, "These children were not sick. Their deaths were not inevitable — they were exposed to, and in many cases were pushed harmful content online, the kind any child could encounter. No child should be exploited, groomed, or preyed upon in digital spaces. To the platforms, they may be seen as statistics. To their families, they were cherished and irreplaceable."

Mental health has long been a focus of Harry and Meghan's charitable endeavors, including raising awareness about the dangers social media can pose to young people.

Through their organization, Archewell Philanthropies, they have made online safety a central focus of their advocacy. That mission became increasingly urgent through the Parents' Network, an initiative created to support families whose children have been harmed by social media platforms and to connect them with others going through similar situations.

Meghan Markle at the inauguration of The Lost Screen Memorial in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 17, 2026
Credit: Baz Ratner

During a discussion with young people in Australia last month, Meghan commented that she was “bullied and attacked” every day for 10 years on social media and was “the most trolled person in the entire world."

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“When I think of all of you and what you're experiencing, I think so much of that is having to realize that you know that industry, that billion-dollar industry, that is completely anchored and predicated on cruelty to get clicks — that's not going to change. So you have to be stronger than that," Meghan said.

Prince Harry also noted that social media has “led to so much loneliness for so many people," PA Media reported, before he shared the benefits of therapy with the group: "I waited until I was literally in the fetal position, much older, lying on the kitchen floor. Until I was like, 'Okay, maybe this therapy thing — maybe I should try it.' ”

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