Digital Childhoods Summit Policy, practice,
and futures
11-12 June 2025
We know that children’s lived experiences are rapidly changing, and that every childhood is now fundamentally digital. Our mission is to create positive digital childhoods for every child in Australia.
The Digital Child is a national research centre, funded by the Australian Research Council and comprised of over 200 researchers from across Australia plus national and international partners. Our research is designed to help inform three key areas that impact and influence on children’s lives – technology, education, and policy.
Find out more: digitalchild.org.au
Our Steering Committee
The Digital Child would like to acknowledge the contribution of our Summit Steering Committee, who shaped the program. We thank them for contributing their time and expertise.
Professor Simon Smith (Chair), Digital Child
Jackie Coates, Telstra Foundation
John Livingstone, UNICEF Australia
Laureen Villegas, Office of the eSafety Commissioner
Dr Sandra Cheeseman, C&K
Sarah Davies AM, Alannah & Madeline Foundation
Welcome to the Digital Childhoods Summit
Thank you for joining us at the Digital Childhoods Summit.
With a focus on policy and practice, the Summit is a peak meeting of the many key stakeholders - including government, regulators, industry, and the community sector - who care for children and their digital lives.
We hope you find the next two days useful and we look forward to working with you to produce a list of agreed priorities for supporting children in the digital world.
DATA SNAPSHOT: AUSTRALIA CHILDREN
OF THE DIGITAL AGE
The Australian Children of the Digital Age (ACODA) study is documenting and tracking patterns of more than 3000 Australian families and their children from six months to six years of age.
Here’s some of what our ACODA families told us in the first wave of data collection.
CHILDREN’S VIEWS:
WHAT DO CHILDREN WANT FROM FUTURE DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES?
In 2024, Digital Child researchers and collaborators investigated how Australian and South Korean children between ages 6 and 8 envision digital technologies of the future.
Using speculative design fiction, they invited children from select primary schools in South Korea (Bucheon, Gwangmyeong, Siheung) and Australia (Canberra) to participate in workshops where they designed, drew, wrote and narrated about future digital technologies.
The drawings depict hopeful, creative visions of the future. Explore all 60 drawings on our website.
AI Robot: It’s an AI robot. When you tell it to turn off the lights, it turns them off, and when you tell it to turn them on, it turns them on. I think it would be good for my brother to use it. If my brother uses it, I think he’ll think about living a good life.
Hoverchair by Freya: Chair that helps you to walk far so you won’t be tired
Flying chair: It’s a self-driving flying car that can be used by the visually impaired.
City Dog Robot by Colton: “Once there was a lazy child and she didn’t want to do anything so she went to Kmart (affordable shop in Australia) and bought city dog robot so she never had to do anything ever again.”
Day One
Wednesday, 11 June
Time Details
8.50-9.00 Arrival
National Ballroom 3, Hotel Realm
9.00-9.30 Welcome to Country
Introduction to the Summit
Professor Simon Smith, Chief Investigator, Digital Child
Opening remarks
Distinguished Professor Susan Danby, Director, Digital Child
9.30-10.00 Keynote: Digital Wellbeing
John Livingstone and Chelsea Adams, UNICEF Australia
10.00-10.30 Panel session: Insight from the Digital Child
Dr Rebecca Ng
Dr Janelle MacKenzie
Dr Suzanne Srdarov
Dr Katrin Langton
Chair: Dr Cassandra Pattinson
10.30-11.00 Morning tea
Terrace outside of National Ballroom 3
11.00-11.50 Panel session: Inclusion and communities
Professor Sandy O’Sullivan, Macquarie University
Felicity McMahon, Starlight Children’s Foundation
Dr Sandra Garrido, ReachOut Australia
Penny Markham, Goodstart
Chair: Professor Daniel Johnson, Digital Child
11.50-12.30 Roundtable discussions on panel theme with attendees, led by Digital Child researchers at each table
1.40-2.10
Digital Childhoods Summit Hotel Realm, Canberra
Terrace outside of National Ballroom 3
Panel session: Insights from the Digital Child
Dr Cassandra Pattinson
Dr Sumudu Mallawaarachchi
Dr Lois Peach
Dr Jess Hardley
Chair: Dr Shannon Edmed
2.10-3.00
Panel session: Digital literacy for families
Jordana Brown, The Smith Family
Dr Sandra Cheeseman, C&K
Dr Stephanie Smith, Museum of Australian Democracy
Wendy Henning, ICPA QLD
Chair: Professor Lennie Barblett, Digital Child
3.00-3.40 Roundtable discussions on panel theme with attendees, led by Digital Child researchers at each table
Working afternoon tea served on Terrace
3.40-4.00 Roundtable summaries from Digital Child Chief Investigators
4.00-5.00 Networking drinks and canapes
Terrace outside of National Ballroom 3
Day Two Thursday, 12 June
Time Details
8.45-9.00 Arrival
National Ballroom 3
9.00-9.10 Welcome to Day 2
Professor Simon Smith, Chief Investigator, Digital Child
9.10-9.40 Keynote
Dr Kate Bower, Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
9.40-10.30 Panel session: Children’s privacy and security
Mia Garlick, Meta
Andrea Leask, Netsafe
Rachel Purdy, Australian Federal Police
Craig Bennett, ACECQA
Chair: Professor Tama Leaver, Digital Child
10.30-11.00 Morning tea with attendees, led by Digital Child researchers at each table
Digital Childhoods Summit Hotel Realm, Canberra
Time Details
11.40-12.30 Panel session: Leadership and action
Lucy Thomas OAM, Project ROCKIT
Chloe Shorten, Centre for Digital Wellbeing
Sunita Bose, Digital Industry Group Inc.
John Livingstone, UNICEF Australia
Chair: Professor Louise Paatsch, Digital Child
12.30-1.40 Lunch
Terrace outside of National Ballroom 3
1.40-2.30 Roundtable rankings of priorities for supporting children in a digltal world with attendees, led by Digital Child researchers at each table
2.30-3.30 Roundtable summaries from Digital Child Chief Investigators
Concluding remarks and next steps
Professor Simon Smith, Chief Investigator, Digital Child
3.30-4.00 Afternoon and networking Terrace outside of National Ballroom 3
With thanks to the children who contributed artwork: Alex, Ari, Ava, Caleb, Ella, Elodie, Esther, Felix, Finn, Fox, Harper, Jamie, Luka, Madi, Maggie, Maria, Mila, Miller, Noah, Oscar, and Ramona.
digitalchild.org.au