Responsible Data for Children

Event

The countdown to the UN World Data Forum is on! From 12 to 15 November 2024, we’ll be showcasing our groundbreaking commitment: Data Governance Fit for Children (DG4C). As we approach this pivotal moment, we’re excited to share that our initiative is growing even stronger, with more youth organisations joining the effort. The Commitment to DG4C continues to work for children, with children, driving home the message that child-centred data governance is not just a vision—it’s an urgent necessity we can tackle together. The UNWDF Commitment to DG4C is a pioneering initiative that unites a diverse group of organisations and young leaders, committed to ensuring that children’s rights are prioritised in the rapidly evolving world of data and AI. This commitment brings together: Youth representatives—from Generation Unlimited's Young People’s Action Team, Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data’s Data Values Advocates, Office of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Youth Envoy’s Young Leaders for the SDGs, UNICEF Colombia’s Red Nacional de Participación Adolescentes en Movimiento por sus Derechos—to amplify youth perspectives and co-create solutions for positive change. UNICEF’s Data Governance Fit for Children Programme to advocate for programmes, policies and systems that are grounded in child and youth rights. DevelopMetrics to integrate ethical AI, supervised machine learning, and fine-tuned large language models in collaboration with youth at the onset of AI development. Highway Child to ensure that children’s voices are authentically represented and that the information they share through in creative content is safeguarded. Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority to promote responsible government AI systems that prioritise child wellbeing needs and provide a data driven perspective to decision making. The Governance Lab to empower children by ensuring data and technology are used to make more effective, equitable, and legitimate decisions that solve public problems. The Datasphere Initiative to empower diverse youth communities by equipping them with knowledge and tools to amplify their participation in data governance and AI policy discussions. Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data to amplify youth voices and empower young people to engage meaningfully in data governance, strengthening their ability to lead impactful, multi-stakeholder collaborations. Stay tuned as we elevate youth voices and push for responsible data practices that safeguard and uplift children’s rights. For every child, responsible data.

Youth Voices

Note: The views and ideas shared in this article come directly from the inspiring young leaders who contributed to the campaign as part of the Responsible Data for Children (RD4C) initiative. These voices reflect the unique perspectives of youth from diverse backgrounds and regions. While RD4C provided light editorial support to enhance readability, the content remains entirely theirs—authored by young people for young people. Their insights are independent and do not necessarily represent official positions or endorsements by UNICEF or The GovLab.   Recordemos aquellos viejos tiempos donde la juventud empezaba a utilizar la mensajería instantánea para comunicarse y relacionarse. En un pestañear, cambiamos hojas de libros por hojas virtuales y así también cambió la forma de gobernar, la cual sintió imparablemente la llegada de un fenómeno que yo denomino "la hiperconexión de gobernanzas dominantes". Cuando las redes de datos pasaron de un byte a un terabyte en tiempo récord, dicha evolución tecnológica resultó tan intuitiva y fácil para los más jóvenes (quienes lo sentían como jugar con un videojuego) a la vez que resultaba para los mayores tan difícil como reproducir ese viejo tocadiscos. Los gobiernos, los jóvenes y la hiperconexión tenemos una meta en común y es llevar estas herramientas a la gestión inteligente, no solamente como una forma artificial, sino aplicando la ética en tiempos mecánicos. La inversión en ciencia y tecnología en países en vía de desarrollo es aún baja. La meta que propone el informe de la UNESCO sobre la ciencia hacia 2030 con alianzas como UNASUR mejorará totalmente la inversión en ciencia y tecnología. Según el informe, en países de América Latina y el Caribe esta inversión es de alrededor del 1% del PIB. Este es el gran reto para los países: llevar la inteligencia artificial a las zonas descentralizadas de la urbanidad para que através de las nuevas tecnologías se brinde acompañamiento por los gobiernos para que sus buenas prácticas generen la transformación en la ruralidad, fusionando la rica tradición de las comunidades con la asombrosa inteligencia artificial. ¿Cómo la gestión inteligente en torno a la juventud puede funcionar? Bien, utilizaré un ejemplo concreto para argumentar el anterior texto con ejemplos vivenciales desde la infancia misma a la actualidad con la modernidad. Aquellos tiempos en octavo grado de clases, utilizábamos los primeros celulares con cualquier sistema operativo vigente. Con esas aplicaciones iniciales anteriores a la inteligencia artificial, como lo son las calculadoras, que a través de la cámara telefónica se utilizaban para resolver ejercicios matemáticos de forma acertada en su 80%. En el contexto de los modelos de educación con enfoques tradicionales que tenemos en Suramérica, descubrir estas nuevas formas como los estudiantes se vinculaban con los teléfonos móviles me permitió darme cuenta que esta sería una nueva herramienta clave. En efecto, los teléfonos móviles son una parte fundamental y cotidiana para la mayoría de personas hoy en día, constituyendo de alguna manera una herencia material tecnológica de nuestra generación. Hablar de ética en el rumbo tecnológico es importante, ya que si bien las tecnologías tienen un gran potencial para contribuir al desarrollo de la humanidad, también presentan múltiples riesgos que pueden derivarse del mal uso. Con el boom de las inteligencias artificiales, con herramientas como ChatGPT, los estudiantes encontraron formas de evitar algunas responsabilidades educativas, lo que termina afectando su propio proceso educativo. ¿Pero cómo pasamos de que la IA se utilice para hacer copia en exámenes, invadiendo la ética, a que esta sea una herramienta de construcción social?  En mi opinión, la inteligencia artificial nos guía con sus respuestas, pero mecánicamente nosotros somos los que brindamos la mayoría de la información posible para desarrollar. Tan fácil incluso sería preguntarle a la IA qué aportaría a este texto y seguramente nos aportaría los puntos claves del texto escrito y qué estructura puede cambiar. El enfoque de que esta herramienta se transforme en un modelo de construcción social, como ese puente que garantice funciones comunitarias, de desarrollo, de aprendizaje, es crucial. Estamos viendo que este invento puede poner en práctica nuestra destreza en aprendizaje, solicitarle a la inteligencia artificial que nos enseñe sobre qué luna puede beneficiar la siembra, qué tipos de semillas me recomienda para esta temporada, como a nivel social nos enseña algunos párrafos filosóficos en temas comunes. Eso también es algo clave: la transparencia de que las personas reconozcan cuando han utilizado herramientas de inteligencia artificial para llevar a cabo sus tareas o trabajos académicos. Le podemos preguntar cómo hacer un huerto en nuestras casas, que elabore el resumen de un libro, que nos enseñe matemáticas. Al final, éticamente dentro de cada ser humano, estará el buen uso de esta herramienta. Es recomendable que los parámetros educativos no solamente se enfoquen en prohibir estas tecnologías – tendencia que suele verse con nuevas tecnologías o desarrollos innovadores – sino en equipar a estudiantes y profesores con herramientas que les permitan darles un buen uso, aprovechar su potencial y minimizar los riesgos. El uso adecuado de las herramientas de inteligencia artificial como educativas permite que agilicemos las búsquedas y el desarrollo de actividades a corto, mediano y largo plazo. ¿Esto no es lo que actualmente el mundo pide? Todo con agilidad, casi inmediato, respuestas rápidas. La zona rural, desde hace mucho tiempo, siempre tiene ese gran problema de desconexión. Aun así, los teléfonos inteligentes ya se encuentran en el apropiamiento de un gran porcentaje de los habitantes de las zonas rurales, por ejemplo, en el país de Colombia según un informe del Departamento Nacional de Estadística, DANE, en el total nacional el 96,3% de los hogares al menos una persona tenía teléfono celular en el año 2022. En África, según el Fondo Internacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (FIDA), los teléfonos móviles han ayudado a 1,7 millones de agricultores en pequeña escala a aumentar la producción local después de la desaceleración económica provocada por la pandemia. Es en este contexto, la gestión de datos será apropiada para llevar cursos de aprendizaje sobre cómo la inteligencia artificial permitirá que esta herramienta se use en un futuro no muy lejano en el campo, en todos sus ámbitos. Los jóvenes estamos vinculados al presente y al futuro de la inteligencia artificial. De hecho, puedo dar certeza que, como consejero de juventudes, tanto mis compañeros como yo hemos utilizado herramientas de inteligencia artificial, para traducir textos o simplemente, citar con normas APA o incluso articular las grandes ideas que se tienen para generar proyectos en pro de la comunidad. Pero, claramente, habrá personas y gobiernos a los que les dará vergüenza admitir el uso de inteligencias artificiales para un beneficio o desarrollo común. Es necesario aplicar éticamente y con responsabilidad prácticas adecuadas para guiar a una gobernanza más abierta en torno a las tecnologías.Recordemos que los gobiernos, antes de que empiecen a trabajar esa nueva terminología de “gobiernos digitales” en todo el mundo, donde antes hacías mega colas para recibir un documento, ahora con 10 clicks lo obtienes. Pondré el ejemplo de mi país, Colombia, donde el dominio web de su gobierno permite hacer consultas en alcaldías, gobernaciones y el gobierno nacional. La relación ciencia de datos, conectividad digital y gobierno es un hecho en la actualidad, porque sin internet o servicios de sistemas operativos no podemos hacer nada. En realidad, ya estamos en un mundo hiperconectado, pero también la inteligencia artificial hará parte en cada sistema de gobernanza para acelerar procesos estadísticos. En esta cuarta revolución industrial, la inteligencia artificial será clave en el desarrollo presente y futuro de nuevos lineamientos para el trabajo. El mundo analógico está lleno de cambios cada año. La transformación tecnológica es como esa bola de nieve en descenso, pero en este caso es un ascenso sin límites. Aún no sabemos qué límite tecnológico tenemos por desarrollar, y considero que estas serán las nuevas metas a futuro. ¿Hasta dónde llegaremos? Es incierto. Lo que sí es cierto es que las decisiones que tomemos hoy incluso ayudarán mañana a salvar vidas, porque la hiperconexión debe tener un punto de equilibrio que brinde oportunamente buenas prácticas en la gobernanza. (Image by Alina Grubnyak / Unsplash is licensed under CC0)   About the Author Juan Felipe Montenegro ha sido reconocido como un agente de cambio social comprometido con la construcción de paz y justicia ambiental. Su trabajo en bases sociales, abarcando realidades urbanas y rurales, le ha permitido incidir a nivel nacional e internacional. Participa como delegado juvenil global en la 3° cohorte del Young People Action Team (YPAT) de Generation Unlimited y UNICEF. Además, es Gestor en Adolescentes en Movimiento, donde promueve círculos de empoderamiento juvenil y pedagogía virtual sobre construcción de paz y como Consejero de Juventudes fomenta la innovación en prácticas de gobernanza.

New Publication

Of the world’s population, every 1 in 2 people are under the age of 30. Among youth aged between 10 and 24, 9 out of 10 live in the Global South. Yet, young people's voices are the least represented and heard when their future is decided. Worldwide, only 2.6% of parliamentarians are under 30. Many young people have also noted in workshops conducted by UNICEF that while they are frequently consulted during policy development, they are seldom considered as decision-makers. In one U-Report survey with nearly 80,000 respondents, only 3 out of 10 feel they have much control over their digital future.  This disconnect is exacerbated by the growing importance of data. Data is a power that drives service delivery, policy formulation, and governance improvements worldwide. Yet, it also poses significant risks. Data can be misused—from enabling discrimination and surveillance to facilitating criminal activities.  When it comes to data governance, a youth perspective is urgently needed—not only because they are the most active generation online, but also because they are the most affected: Their physical, emotional, social and psychological developmental needs, adds an extra layer of vulnerability.  On International Youth Day, it is essential to ask: How can data policies better serve and empower young people in shaping their digital futures?   Global Best Practices  A number of countries and institutions have already taken the lead in engaging the youth on the issues and concerns that affect their daily lives.  In Zimbabwe, researchers worked with 475 children between the ages of 12 and 17 to develop the Child Online Protection policy.Their inputs formed the core of the proposal from the initial conception to the final draft. Yet the engagement didn’t stop there. The research team went back to hear their feedback after the draft was validated by the government, making sure the policy reflected their vision for a safe digital future. Similar exercises have  been seen in Zambia and Germany.  In the United Nations, UNICEF has taken a similar approach. It developed a digital community, U-Report, for young people in nearly 100 countries to raise their voices and express their concerns. The UN Youth Office has launched a number of campaigns, including the latest one, World Leaders: It’s Time to Let #YouthLead, to call for more youth engagement across the world. Multiple country teams have been relentlessly working to enhance youth participation through capacity building to policy advising.  Big tech companies are also joining this effort. Microsoft has created the Council for Digital Good in the United States and Europe, bringing teenagers together to listen to their expectations and hopes for responsible online interactions. Meta, Facebook’s parent company, has also launched a youth advisory network to invite young people to share thoughts on their ideal digital future.  However, the current efforts are not enough. Much more can be done.  Driving Engagement Forward  First, the digital divide still poses a significant challenge to young people that needs to be addressed.   Disparities between urban and rural areas, as well as wealthy and poor households, widely persist in all countries.  Several studies have found that data literacy is relatively low in the Global South; the gaps between middle-income and high-income countries are also considerable.  Meanwhile, although gender differences in understanding data have narrowed among younger generations, the lack of comprehensive, disaggregated data specifically on girls obstructs targeted interventions and perpetuates inequalities. For example, without specific data on girls' school attendance and dropout rates, it would be difficult for policymakers to effectively address the barriers they face, such as early marriage, household responsibilities, or a lack of sanitary facilities. As advocated by the people-centric principle of RD4C, it is essential that both public and private sectors bear these divisions in mind and work together to bridge them, prioritising the best interest of the child over their potential efficiency gains or other process-oriented objectives.  Second, when it comes to data governance, youth should be involved in the entire cycle of policymaking.  The development of a policy involves multiple steps. From issue identification and research to consultation and formulation, each process requires the participation of youth. The monitoring and evaluation phase is no exception.  Research has suggested that if young people consider their participation as unsatisfactory, unequal, or superficial, they may feel "used" or regard the involvement as "tokenistic".   Today, the common practice of youth engagement favors consulting with young people rather than involving them in decision-making. There is also a lack of mechanisms for monitoring youth feedback. A comprehensively participatory approach allows the young generation to meaningfully participate in the entire process of making data policies. This ensures their opinions are fully considered and respected throughout the data lifecycle.   Third, understand the youth to leverage their wisdom.  To promote effective youth engagement, it is essential to gain a thorough understanding of their behaviors and preferences. By leveraging these insights, we can craft innovative platforms tailored to their needs and interests.  According to a policy brief published by UN DESA, young people prefer instant feedback and are highly sensitive to reward; they have strong attachments to their identities yet can be influenced by peers easily. Therefore, in addition to traditional engagement methods like discussion roundtables and youth-led research, more creative approaches can be adopted.   Some of the most interesting examples include the UN Big Data Hackathon, which has separate youth tracks. Such events not only help young people to better understand the data around them, but also teach them how to fully use it to make their future brighter.  Another example comes from Manchester, a city in the northwest of England. The city developed the Greater Manchester Youth Combined Authority, an organization consisting entirely of young people. They are responsible for advising on and scrutinising the work of the mayor on key issues of concern to the young generation. Under this mechanism, the youth can see how their fellows’ inputs have a direct impact on policies that affect them. This special arrangement  empowers the youth to inspire the youth.   *** Growing up in a digital age, many young people have never seen a world without the internet. While some might know how to use the internet to entertain themselves and make life easier, they remain vulnerable in an ecosystem flooded with data.  Given that young people initially lack agency in handling data and asserting their rights, it becomes all too easy for adults to step in and make decisions on their behalf. However, a more constructive approach is to nurture their agency, rather than simply taking over the power.  Nearly all countries of the world have ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child, a universal treaty that also applies to data responsibility. According to Article 17, when developing legislation, policies, programmes, services and training on children’s rights in relation to the digital environment, States parties should involve all children, listen to their needs and give due weight to their views. This should not be overlooked, nor forgotten.  To hear the voice of youth, RD4C cooperates with Generation Unlimited to hold a virtual discussion panel in August, featuring young leaders from around the world. Through this event, we aim to provide a platform where they can share their perspectives, experiences, and insights on data responsibility and data governance. By empowering young people and amplifying their voices, we believe they can lead the way as change-makers in our constantly evolving digital world. Youth is the future. Let’s not let the future down.    Image by John Schnobrich / Unsplash is licensed under CC0

New Publication

In our increasingly datafied world, the responsible handling of data for and about children has become a critical issue. UNICEF, governments, and its partners acknowledge the vital importance of acting to advance children’s well-being while preserving their rights and agency. We engage with partners around the world to inform practices around data (re)use for and about children.  In June, the RD4C team travelled to Beijing, where UNICEF China organized a social policy salon. Attendees discussed how to better understand and respond to children's development needs through data in the field of social protection. Representatives from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and six local civil affairs departments attended the meeting and shared their experiences in tracking the wellbeing of low-income populations and the development of a child module.    Reflecting on this recent policy forum in Beijing as well as past experiences in several other contexts, we have come up with three broad clusters of rationales that highlight the significance of data responsibility for children in the context of government owned, administrative data systems.  1. Building Trust to Enable and Improve Service Delivery  Trust is foundational in any relationship, especially when it comes to children and their data. Responsible data management fosters trust among children, parents, and the broader community, enabling more effective service delivery.   Trust in data practices means that individuals and communities believe their data is being handled securely, ethically and efficiently. For children, whose understanding of data and its implications may be limited, trust is even more vital. When parents and guardians believe that their children's data is being managed responsibly, they are more likely to engage with and support services and programs that require them to provide their and their children’s data.  Without trust in how data is handled, children and their caregivers can adopt “privacy-protective behaviour”. This behaviour occurs when individuals or communities take actions to protect their privacy, often by limiting their engagement with services they perceive as untrustworthy.   This can mean that children don’t receive the services they need.  By establishing and maintaining trust through responsible data practices, organisations can prevent privacy protective behaviour and ensure that children and communities overall have access to essential services.  Along the same lines, responsible data practices support an organisation's reputation as a responsible player, which equally contributes to trust in the institution. In an era where data breaches and privacy scandals can significantly damage credibility and trust, demonstrating a commitment to responsible data management is crucial.   This reputation can enhance relationships with stakeholders, including parents and caregivers, communities, and funding bodies. Transparency in data practices and a proactive approach to safeguarding children's data can significantly bolster an organisation's standing in the community, both at national and international level. 2. Enhancing Performance through Better System Design  Another main objective of implementing more responsible data practices is improving performance of data systems and the quality of related services.   Responsible data practices require organisations to think critically about their data management processes and what the data will be used for, to ensure their efforts make a (responsible) difference and drive impact.   For that reason, a clear purpose and information needs should be defined from design stage on, though it is never too late to make improvements in responsible data practices with children’s best interests in mind. Determining an overarching purpose of the insights gained through data can be further used for policy making and improving the quality-of-service delivery.   For example, data collected in the social protection sector can be used to identify children in need of support and also to track progress and determine eligibility to additional services and interventions tailored to their specific needs.   By monitoring progress in purpose-driven systems, social protection programs can track the effectiveness of interventions, adjust strategies as needed, and ensure continuous improvement. Additionally, data allows for efficient resource allocation, ensuring that social assistance, basic health insurance and so forth essential support reach the children who need them most, thereby maximising the overall impact of social protection initiatives. 3. Protecting Children and Safeguarding them from Harm  The protection of children and their rights is a fundamental rationale for responsible data practices. Children are particularly vulnerable to the consequences of data misuse and its potential harms, making it imperative to prioritise their safety, in the digital age that we live in.   Data about children’s personal lives is particularly sensitive. Misuse of this data can lead to significant harm, including identity theft, exploitation, discrimination, psychological impact, population fatigue of providing data and a loss of trust in service providers as previously mentioned. Another potential harm is the missed use of data for social good and inefficiencies in handling data, that can lead to opportunities for intervention for example on a policy level not being identified and critical needs not addressed. Responsible data practices aim to mitigate these risks by implementing robust safeguards and ensuring that children's data is handled with utmost care.  International conventions, such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), mandate the protection of children's privacy and data. Adhering to these legal frameworks is not only a compliance issue but also a moral imperative to promote and protect children's well-being.  Implementing Responsible Data Practices in Government-Owned Data Systems: Key Considerations  The rationales mentioned above highlight the importance of implementing responsible data principles, especially when handling data for and about children. It also provided practical insights into how these principles can be translated into practices and policies.   By exploring the three broad rationales—trust and reputation, performance of services and related data systems, and protection from harms—we highlighted the multifaceted benefits of prioritising responsible data for children.   Trust enables effective service delivery by preventing privacy protective behaviour, and supporting an organisation's reputation as a responsible player fosters this trust. A focus on data responsibility by design enhances system performance from the outset on, with a clear purpose and defined impact paths of both the programme and the data management system in question. The insights gained from data, can be used by public services and policy makers to improve the quality of their offering with children and their families’ best interests at heart.   ***  The bottom line here is responsible data management for children goes beyond mere compliance with existing regimes but requires a multifaceted approach intersecting with trust, performance, protection, and reputation, with a positive impact on children’s lives at the centre.   If you’d like to follow the progress on this work, sign up for our newsletter here for further updates.