Together for a better internet

As a young person, you are the main target of Safer Internet Day, but that does not mean you are a passive recipient of the collective effort towards the promotion of a better internet that takes place every February. In fact, there are a wealth of opportunities for young people to make their voices heard on matters relating to their safety and wellbeing in the online world, from contacting your national Safer Internet Centre or Safer Internet Day Committee and getting involved in their youth participation schemes, to becoming an advocate of Safer Internet Day on social media by sharing your experience of the digital environment and your aspirations for a better internet – take a look at our social media plans for inspiration. You can also be the change you want to see in the (online) world by being kind and respectful to others online, by protecting your online reputation and that of others, and by seeking out positive opportunities to create, engage and share online.

Parents and carers, you play a crucial role in empowering and supporting children and young people to use digital technologies responsibly, respectfully, critically and creatively. Indeed, parental influence, guidance and education have a significant and long-lasting impact on children’s safety and wellbeing in the online world. Therefore, there are plenty of ways for you to participate in Safer Internet Day, whether it is by ensuring an open dialogue with your children, educating them to use digital technologies safely and positively, or acting as digital role models. To help you achieve that, you may want to have a look at the SID resource gallery, where you’ll find a range of resources to use with your children, from information sheets on various online opportunities and risks to conversation starters and even games, which are available in a variety of languages and for a variety of age groups. If you would like to find out more about specific actions and resources in your country, you can get in touch with your local Safer Internet Centre or Safer Internet Day Committee.

As a teacher or educator, there are various ways in which you can get involved in Safer Internet Day. Firstly, the most important way is to raise awareness – talk to your colleagues to plan whole-school actions, and provide a real focus with a day, week or even a month of safer and better internet activities. If you’re looking for resources to support you in this, check out the SID resource gallery. Here, you’ll find a range of resources from assembly and lesson plans, to printable games to use in the classroom, in a variety of languages and for a variety of age groups. You may also wish to make contact with your local Safer Internet Centre or Safer Internet Day Committee to find out about specific actions in your country. They may also be able to assist with more targeted resources. If your school has a social media account, you can support SID by tweeting and posting about your actions, and sharing our posts too. You can find suggested posts, visuals and covers in our social media plans. 

As a representative of an organisation and industry, you are in a direct position to design, shape and adapt the platforms, services and content children and young people interact with on a daily basis. In doing so, you have the power to make a safer and better internet a concrete reality. You may get involved in Safer Internet Day by creating and promoting positive content and safe services online – to support you in doing so, we have designed a best practice guide on positive online content for children which you may find useful. You may also participate in Safer Internet Day by empowering your youngest users to respond to any issues by providing clear safety advice, a range of easy-to-use safety tools, and quick access to support if things do go wrong. Finally, we also encourage you to express your support for Safer Internet Day by posting about your actions on social media and by sharing our posts. You can find suggested posts, visuals and covers in our social media plans which will be published in January 2021 as we countdown to the day.

Policy makers and politicians can promote a safer and better internet by putting in place the conditions for the emergence of a culture in which all stakeholders are encouraged and empowered to make the choices that will guarantee that children and young people have the best possible online experiences. As a representative from policy, you may support Safer Internet Day by (re)affirming the need to provide opportunities in the national or local curriculum for children and young people to learn about online safety, digital and media literacy, by ensuring that parents and carers have access to appropriate information and sources of support, and that industry is encouraged to self-regulate its content and services. To make a long-lasting change to the digital environment, you also need to take the lead in governance and legislation in order to ultimately ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and young people through effective child protection strategies for the digital world.

Every February, Safer Internet Day is an opportunity for millions of people around the world to raise awareness of children and young people’s online safety and wellbeing. For this reason, media outlets can truly help multiply the global reach of Safer Internet Day by using this occasion as an opportunity to explore the importance of online safety and digital literacy for children and young people in your media production. To support you in doing so, for each campaign we develop a range of promotional materials – to begin with, take a look at the Safer Internet Day key messages. As the day approaches, we'll provide an infographic and other media assets, and publish a number of news articles about Safer Internet Day celebrations and activities around the world. If you would like to become an advocate of Safer Internet Day, have a look at our social media plans, which are full of inspiration for posts and visuals to lend your support to the day.