The Nordic Youth IGF initiativeInvolving youths in the dialogue on the governance and future of the Internet

International conference on The Effects of Internet on Children and Young People, Budapest 26th of September 2012

Alex Amneus, Swedish Media Council

Co-funded by the European Commission

Why is involving youth important?What have we done in this project?

What have we learnt?What are the future challenges?

Involving young people

• The use of Internet by young people – a key to the future shape of Internet

• The commitment and interest of young people regarding internet governance

• The rights of young people to express their views and be heard

• The fruitfulness of IGF issues when involving youths in discussing Internet issues

Why this is important

• Nordic Youth Internet Governance Forum• Based on the International IGF issues• Aimed at EuroDIG and IGF conferences 2012• Builds on experiences from national Youth IGF:s

and Safer Internet Centre youth panels• Youth recommendations documented and

disseminated by research institution

What have we done - the NYIGF

Nordic Youth Delegation

Objectives and ambitions• Involving young people in discussions about

internet governance and safer internet• Creating meetings between young people and

policy makers/stakeholders• Raising the issue of youth participation in

Internet governance forums• Develop the discussion on Safer Internet

issues and digital cultural expressions

• The International Clearinghouse on Children, Youth & Media, within Nordicom (Nordic Information Centre for Media and Communication Research)at Gothenburg University

• Nordic public media agencies (SIC:s): – Swedish Media Council (founder and coordinator)– Danish Media Council for Children and Young People– Norwegian Media Authority– National Parent´s Association in Iceland– Finnish Mannerheim League

Formal partners of the NYIGF

• Nat. youth panels in the five Nordic countries (6 youths age 14-17 per country)

• Online activities before, during and after the NYIGF conference

• Nordic Youth IGF - Sthlm June 12-13(26 panellists from 5 countries)

• Nordic Youth Delegation at international events during 2012

Youth participation

• Young people are eager to talk about the internet and its future!

• Time and preparations are crucial to enable meaningful youth participation

• Clear and concise objectives allow deepened workshop discussions

• Access to policy making arenas depends on good relations with key stakeholders

What have we learnt

• Incorporate youth organizations more actively in the safer internet discussions

• Building on the good existing initiatives – to cooperate and develop this further

• The next step: to integrate youth participation into ordinary structures of IGF arenas etc.

Future challenges

Overall task: to empower children and adolescents as competent media users and protect them from harmful media influence.

Methods: to monitor the media development and to disseminate information and provide guidance about the media situation of children and youth.

Runs the Swedish SIC since 2004, now in cooperation with BRIS (Children’s Right in Society)

Other specific task: to classify and provide age ratings for films intended for public screening for children under the age of 15.

Swedish Media CouncilMEDIA LITERACY

GATHERING AND DISSEMINATION OF KNOWLEDGE

FILM CLASSIFICATION

SAFER INTERNET CENTRE

Thank you!• alex.amneus@statensmedierad.se

Coordinator Safer Internet Centre Sweden• lena.fagerstrom@statensmedierad.se

Nordic Project manager, NYIGF