For a safe digital future: Milan Recommendations on the online well-being and safety of children and pre-adolescents

On 10 October 2024, at the Palazzo Reale in Milan, the Department of Sociology of the University of Milan-Bicocca, under the guidance of the scientific head Prof. Marco Gui, will present the ‘Milan Recommendations on the online well-being and safety of children and pre-adolescents’. The event, organised as part of the Milano Digital Week in collaboration with the Municipality of Milan, is the result of two years of work within the ‘Patto Educativo Digitale della città di Milano’ project, part of the MUSA Spoke6 – Digital Wellbeing programme.

This project involved more than 15,000 people including parents, teachers, children, adolescents and experts in a broad collective consultation process that addressed the challenges of digital education for the youngest. Started in 2022, the process led to the drafting of a document reflecting the needs of the city community, with the aim of drawing shared guidelines.

The Milan Recommendations touch on eight key points, including the most appropriate age for accessing smartphones and social media, the development of digital skills among young people, the use of the Internet for schoolwork, and the role of family paediatricians in digital education. These key points, the result of the joint work of families, schools and professionals, aim to promote a safe and aware digital environment for the youngest. In addition to the presentation of the document, concrete actions that the Milan institutions will implement in the coming years to realise these recommendations will be announced.

Among the scheduled speeches will be:

Federico Cella, Corriere della Sera

Anna Scavuzzo, Deputy Mayor of Milan

Layla Pavone, Digital Board of the Municipality of Milan

Alice Arienta, Digitalisation Commission, Milan City Council

Marco Gui, University of Milan-Bicocca

Marina Picca, President SICuPP Lombardia

Marianna Sala, Vice President Corecom Lombardia

Marzia Pontone, Education Commission Milan City Council

The event will be held at the Palazzo Reale in Milan on 10 October 2024, at 14:30 and is aimed at all those who wish to better understand the challenges and opportunities related to the digital world for children and pre-adolescents.