The Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare (the Centre) has secured funding through eSafety’s Preventing Tech-based Abuse of Women Grants Program to deliver an innovative national project aimed at preventing technology-facilitated abuse and violence before it starts.
The project is a partnership between the Centre and design and innovation consultancy Today, bringing together expertise in child and family services, human-centred design, artificial intelligence and the primary prevention of gendered violence.
Working directly with children and young people, including children in out-of-home care and other vulnerable cohorts, the project will build digital literacy, strengthen online safety, and address the harmful attitudes and social norms that contribute to misogyny, coercive behaviour and technology-facilitated abuse.
CEO Jamie Crosby said the project recognises that children’s voices must be at the centre of conversations about artificial intelligence, online safety and the future of digital technology.
“Technology is changing rapidly, and children are often the first to experience both its benefits and its risks. This project will provide tools to protect young people from emerging forms of online harm and make sure they are actively involved in shaping the solutions.”
“By engaging children and young people as partners in co-design, we can build practical tools, resources and approaches that strengthen their agency, promote respectful online behaviour and help prevent technology-facilitated abuse before it occurs.”
Today’s Head of Digital Mark Davis said building young people’s understanding of technology was essential to creating safer digital environments.
“Children and young people are growing up in a world where artificial intelligence is shaping how they learn, connect and express themselves online. Building AI and digital literacy is no longer optional; it’s a critical life skill.”
The project will focus on early intervention and prevention, helping children and young people:
- Build their understanding of AI, online safety and emerging technology-facilitated harms,
- Recognise, respond to and prevent harmful online behaviours,
- Challenge harmful gender stereotypes and social norms that contribute to abuse,
- Develop the skills and confidence to contribute to safer and more respectful online communities,
- Strengthen leadership, participation and decision-making through child-centred co-design.
A key focus of the initiative will be engaging boys and young men as active contributors to respectful and safe online communities, while supporting young people to lead conversations about accountability and online conduct among their peers.
The Centre’s partnership with Today builds on an established collaboration exploring the application of artificial intelligence within the child and family services sector and reflects a shared commitment to ensuring emerging technologies are safe, inclusive and designed with children’s rights and wellbeing at their core.
The project will generate nationally significant insights into how young people can be engaged in the design of safer AI-enabled environments and contribute to a stronger evidence base for preventing technology-facilitated abuse of women and children.