Take a look at our Opinion series, with individual voices from inside and outside COFACE, providing different perspectives and insights on topics relevant for families of today.
53% of Europe’s population between the ages of 6 and 64 plays video games. And, whilst the average age of a player is 32, many players are children. Europe’s video game companies are dedicated to creating games for everyone to enjoy and, also, importantly, to provide safe, responsible environments for those games to be enjoyed in.
We can show kids and teens the path and we can even make it safer for them, but we can’t always be there to hold their hands nor keep them from going out into the world - and the world wide web. The environments that children are growing up in today are drastically different from the ones that we have known in the past. However, one thing is still the same: children and teens want to follow their curiosities, learn who they are and connect with other kids. Today they can do this from the palm of their hands.
Content warning: this article includes material about child sexual abuse that some people might find confronting.
In the 17 seconds you have taken to read this far, footage or images of at least 34 children being abused have been uploaded onto the world wide web. 2 per second. This is the rate of appearance of the kind of material Apple is wilfully failing to detect.
As a parent and child safety expert, I see great value in how the internet can help children grow. Finding relevant information can be transformational but it’s important that this is done in a way that is safe, protects their privacy, and puts minors in control of their data.
In 2020, Toy Industries of Europe (TIE) launched the Play for Change Awards to celebrate toy makers who help kids confidently navigate the world around them. Toy makers know the power their ‘tools of play’ can have over children and they are choosing to use that power for a very positive change.
The toys children play with have a powerful impact on the way they perceive the world. Presenting positive portrayals of children in all their diversity is crucial: toy companies should take a transformative approach to ensure their toys and associating marketing are diverse.
The first few years of a child’s life are a particularly sensitive period in the process of development of the body, brain, and communication. They lay the foundation for cognitive functioning; behavioral, social, and self-regulatory capacities; and physical health. EASPD – the European Association of Service Providers for persons with Disabilities – is strongly committed to developing quality ECI systems across Europe based on the individual needs of the children, families, and carers.
Dear friends, let’s all as parents consider that now more than ever, we are experiencing unprecedented situations caused by the pandemic and other adversities, with considerable social implications that to a greater or lesser extent have impacted us all.
For the third time, Unapei and its partners have launched their campaign “#NoSchoolForMe” to denounce the protracted situations of exclusion lived by children with disabilities. As pupils and students find their way back to school, the UN Committee on the Rights of...
