From 8 to 11 September 2026, UNESCO Digital Learning Week brought together policymakers, researchers, educators, civil society organisations and technology experts at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. Held under the theme “Education in the Age of AI: Facts | Frictions | Frontiers,” the event explored how artificial intelligence is transforming education, addressing opportunities and challenges related to human agency, privacy, digital inequalities and responsible AI governance. The European Parents’ Association (EPA) was selected to contribute to the event’s programme with an interactive Futures Workshop, bringing parents’ perspectives and children’s developmental needs into international discussions on the future of AI in education.
EPA’s Workshop: Protecting Children’s Developing Minds
On 10 September, EPA, in collaboration with the Digital Child Rights Foundation, delivered a 90-minute Futures Workshop entitled “Protecting Children’s Developing Minds in the Age of Uncontrolled AI and Digital Overload.”
The session welcomed more than 40 participants, including policymakers, education professionals, EdTech developers, youth representatives and civil society organisations.
The session opened with an expert panel featuring representatives of EPA, the Digital Child Rights Foundation and UNESCO, examining the opportunities and potential implications of AI for children’s learning, cognitive development and wellbeing. As a central part of the workshop, EPA, together with the Digital Child Rights Foundation, designed, developed and presented an interactive AI Futures Escape Room, transforming complex discussions about artificial intelligence into an immersive, collaborative learning experience.
Participants were transported to a fictional world in 2045, where uncontrolled AI and digital overload had profoundly affected children’s learning, development and everyday lives. Taking on the role of investigators, they worked in teams to complete a series of interconnected missions, each revealing different challenges associated with AI and children’s digital environments.
Following the escape room, participants engaged in a backcasting exercise, moving from imagining a desirable future to identifying the concrete steps needed to achieve it. Working backwards across three key milestones, they explored:
- 2045 – Imagining the Future We Want: Envisioning a child-centred digital world where AI enhances learning, creativity and wellbeing while safeguarding children’s rights and human relationships.
- 2035 – Defining the Path Forward: Identifying the changes needed to achieve this vision, including stronger AI literacy, ethical governance, inclusive technologies and meaningful participation of children and families.
- 2026 – Turning Vision into Action: Developing practical recommendations and immediate actions to strengthen child protection, address digital inequalities and promote responsible AI development.
Key Outcomes: A Manifesto for a Child-Centred AI Future
The workshop’s discussions and recommendations informed the development of the Manifesto for a Child-Centred AI Future. The manifesto calls on governments, international organisations, educational institutions, technology developers, researchers, families and civil society to translate these commitments into coordinated policies and practical action. The manifesto outlines seven key commitments for ensuring that AI serves children’s rights, development and wellbeing:
- Child-centred AI governance: Establishing enforceable safeguards, children’s rights impact assessments and independent oversight.
- Responsible technology development: Prioritising children’s wellbeing through safety-by-design, privacy protection and transparent AI systems.
- AI and media literacy: Equipping children, parents and educators with the skills to critically understand and responsibly use AI.
- Stronger school–family partnerships: Ensuring that parents and caregivers actively participate in decisions about AI in education.
- Accountability and child protection: Strengthening independent evaluations, transparency and oversight of AI technologies.
- Evidence-informed policymaking: Grounding decisions in research on children’s development, learning and digital wellbeing.
- Environmental sustainability: Promoting AI technologies that minimise energy consumption, resource use and environmental harm.