CAPE TOWN – Ahead of the 76th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), members of the PROMISE consortium participated in the pre-conference, “Children’s Rights Under Pressure in a Digital World.” Hosted by the Digital Futures for Children Centre (DFC) in collaboration with the ICA Children, Adolescence and Media Division, and the Communication Law and Policy Division, the event brought together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners from around the world to examine one of the pressing challenges of our time: how to ensure that rapidly evolving digital technologies uphold, rather than undermine, children’s rights.
Discussions during the event explored how research can better inform regulation, platform design, and public policy. Participants reflected on the growing need for solutions that balance youth rights to safety, privacy, participation, and freedom of expression while addressing the social and mental impacts of digital platforms. The event featured a keynote address by Prof. Dr. Ann Skelton (University of Pretoria and Leiden University; former Chair of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child), and presentation by PROMISE Cooperation Partner Prof. Dr. Sonia Livingstone, alongside workshop discussions, research presentations, and an interdisciplinary analysis of current approaches to youth digital safety and well-being.
The event highlighted the importance of bringing together expertise from communication, law, education, psychology, and public policy to address increasingly complex digital challenges. Reflecting the urgency of these conversations, every seat in the venue was filled, with many participants standing throughout the event to take part in the discussions.
Members of team PROMISE took the opportunity to engage with international researchers investigating emerging evidence on social media restrictions and school-based interventions, including media literacy initiatives in Australia, and smartphone bans in schools in Latin America. These perspectives provided a valuable opportunity to compare approaches across regions and identify common priorities and findings for promoting youth well-being online. Reflecting on the experience, PROMISE researcher Eva Ziegltrum noted,
“One of my main takeaways from the pre-conference was that building effective and sustainable digital policies for young people requires both interdisciplinary collaboration and meaningful youth participation. The discussions showed that moving beyond one-size-fits-all regulatory approaches mean developing policies informed not only by robust evidence, but also by children's own experiences and needs. This strongly resonates with PROMISE’s youth-centered approach and our commitment to ensuring young voices help shape the future of digital governance”.
Following the event, the DFC published a report containing the extended abstracts presented during the pre-conference. Covering topics from youth participation and platform governance to commercial exploitation and digital inclusion, the document showcases the breadth of international scholarship dedicated to advancing children’s rights in the digital age. The full publication is available here.