Team effort to achieve a safer internet across Central and Eastern Europe
By: Mairead Keigher /
Tags: child online safety, EU Policy, Globalization, Technology Policy
Microsoft across the Central and Eastern European region has been marking Safer Internet Day for a number of years.
With internet and broadband penetration increasing across the region in the last few years, coupled with greater household wealth, many of our subsidiaries felt this was a topic whose time had come.
As a result, we have been working hand-in-hand with consumer organizations, ministries, teacher (and teacher training) organizations, schools and law enforcement agencies, to increase the awareness of the need to protect children in the online environment. In many countries our primary audience is teachers and parents, whose IT skills usually lag behind those of children, particularly with the arrival of the social networking phenomenon. A number of our subsidiaries, as a result, got involved in the development of curriculum that can be used to educate teachers, parents and younger children.
We think this has been time very well spent; in many countries this topic has fostered a very public discussion, with involvement from a very broad set of interested parties. Children, parents, teachers, and care-givers alike are now very aware of the potential risks to children online, but more importantly we believe they are now better prepared to overcome them.
So today, Microsoft subsidiaries across the region will engage in a mix of employee volunteering activities (aimed at teaching students and parents about safer internet usage) and Child Online Safety Conferences and seminars.
The Polish subsidiary, for example, has partnered with their Child Online Safety Ambassador, Krzysztof Hołowczyc (Racing car driver), to develop Internet training curriculum on Internet Safety, ‘3….2….1…..Internet’ , and has organized a mass distribution of the curriculum to all 14,000 primary schools. Additionally they have driven training activities towards a very broad audience (police, the national scouting association..), and have received the patronage of the Minister for Education and Equal Legal status, along with the Commissioner for Child Rights protection. A key event is planned for today to mark the International Safer Internet Day.
The Romanian subsidiary continues its year-long engagement with a very broad set of stakeholders (consumer organizations, parents, teachers and teaching organizations, students, NGOs, law enforcement agencies, libraries..), and spearheaded by the Romanian Olympic gymnast, Nadia Comaneci. A series of activities and conferences will be held over the period of 8th to 10th February. Microsoft will launch the updated Child Online Safety content available on www.copiidisparuti.ro/lectii. On the same day an award ceremony will take place for the winners of the national contest for children and teenager, “Think before you post”.