The Heritage Foundation has selected the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC) and Institute for Family Studies (IFS) as recipients of the Heritage Innovation Prize. Each group will receive a $50,000 award in support of their work to protect children online. EPPC, in partnership with IFS, recently launched its ‘Protect Kids Online’ initiative. This initiative provides resources to parents, policymakers, and religious leaders to combat challenges associated with rapid technological developments.
The initiative aims to restrict the creation and distribution of online pornography, especially to children, combat Big Tech’s censorship, address social media’s role in promoting the sexual exploitation of children, and examine the positive and negative effects of social media on society.
Dr. Kevin Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation said: “Protecting our nation’s children from the harmful effects of social media should be of utmost importance. We commend our friends at EPPC and IFS for taking this seriously and working tirelessly to ensure that the innocence of our children is protected."
Ryan T. Anderson, Ph.D., president of EPPC added: “Three years ago, Clare Morell launched our work on the Technology and Human Flourishing Project...this prize will enable us to help more states take action.”
Michael Toscano, executive director of IFS commented: "With the Heritage Foundation's Innovation Prize, we can advance further in the fight to liberate children from Silicon Valley."
The Heritage Innovation Prize recognizes nonprofits for projects involving research, litigation, education or communications focused on empowering parents in education or holding Big Tech accountable among other areas.
This is the fourth round of Heritage Innovation Prizes awarded. In 2023 winners included Communio, National Association of Scholars among others. These awards are sponsored by The Heritage Foundation’s endowment for innovative conservative projects.
