CO:RE | Children Online: Research and Evidence Project

Work package 8

Coordinated by Technical University Dublin

Introducing

About work package 8

Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) leads Work Package Policy Stakeholders (WP8) of the CO:RE project. This work package aims to promote and to facilitate the uptake by policymakers of up-to-date scientific research on the impact of digital transformation on children’s lives. Working in conjunction with all other work packages, WP8 will act as a focal point for policy dialogue and debate within the Stakeholder section of the CO:RE platform.

Our goals

The overall goal of the WP8 is to successfully facilitate and to promote the uptake of state of the art scientific research by policymakers, while fostering feedback loops that allow policymakers to bring attention to under-researched, yet necessary aspects for policy making.

In doing so, WP 8 puts forward two key objectives:

To provide a series of supporting actions to ensure that high quality, relevant and robust research evidence as represented in the proposed knowledge base is accessible and readily available for policy makers working in diverse areas relevant to children’s lives.
To facilitate opportunities for relevant policy makers to feed into the research process and to inform researchers about the kind of empirical evidence needed – and relatedly feedback on the impact of previous interventions or solutions aimed at protecting children online and ensuring positive digital experiences.

Our three-year timeline

Year 1

In Year 1, WP 8 will publish a series of policy briefs working in close conjunction with other topics and areas of interest identified in other work packages. WP 8 will host a joint research-industry forum, promoting exchange on topics of mutual relevance between scholars and industry policy specialists. By the end of year 1, a Directory of European Policy Making on Children, Youth and Digital will also be completed.

Year 2

In Year 2, WP 8 continues to publish a series of policy briefs alongside the series of reports, e-brochure and blogs postings from other work packages. We will host an Annual Policy Seminar and continue the series of joint research-industry dialogues. The Youth Policy Forum will be established to facilitate active participation by children and young people in relevant policy debates on the digital environment and impact of digital transformation on young people.

Year 3

In Year 3, the publication of policy briefs, working papers and the hosting of the Annual Policy Seminar will continue. A comprehensive final report on policy implications and recommendations will be compiled, drawing on results of the knowledge base and stakeholder consultations undertaken over the three years of the programme.

Our team

Thuy Dinh

WP8 member

Dr. Thuy Dinh is Senior Research Assistant at Centre for Social and Educational Research, TU Dublin. She holds a PhD in Sociology from University of Essex, UK. She has been engaged with various research projects related to children, families and communities in Asia and Europe in last 15 years. Her research interests have focused on children, young people and their use of the Internet to ensure their on-line safety, without impeding their right to digital opportunities. She is co-author of various papers, reports and articles on children’s use of the internet, online risk and opportunities. These publications support statutory agencies in development of national policy, as well as partnership with corporate bodies on the ethical and social responsibilities to ensure online safety of children. She is members of the Work Package 8 team.

Brian O’Neill

WP8 leader

Brian O’Neill is Professor of Media and Communications and Director of Research, Enterprise & Innovation at Technological University Dublin (IE). As well as leading policy development as a member of the EU Kids Online network, he is a member of Ireland’s National Advisory Council for Online Safety and chaired the Irish government’s task force on Internet Content Governance. He chairs the Steering Group for Media Literacy Ireland, a multi-stakeholder initiative supported by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. In 2018, he contributed to the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) 10 country study on “Youth, digitalisation and gender equality”.
He is Work Package 8 Leader.