Global Network Online Forum - January 2026
Dear all,
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our first Global Network Online Forum of the year on Wednesday, 14 January 2026. We enjoyed hearing about some of the Christmas parties which took place last month and your plans for the year ahead, and thinking together about what topics we want to address in the next three Forums on the theme of “Keeping children safe online”.
Christmas celebrations across the networks
We began the forum by sharing stories from Christmas Parties held across the networks, including events in Honduras, Nepal, and other contexts. It was encouraging to hear how you created meaningful moments for children and families, often in challenging economic or political situations.
Thank you to everyone who shared honestly about both the joys and the limitations of this year’s celebrations. These reflections help us learn together and plan well for the future.
Reminder:
All networks that held Christmas parties are kindly asked to submit their reports to Kezia by 1 February 2026.
A Christmas party image from CarNet Nepal’s Facebook page
Looking ahead to 2026
We then spent time looking ahead to 2026, with networks sharing their programmatic priorities and network development plans for the year. These included:
Programme priorities:
Child protection
Supporting parents and teachers
Child mental health and wellbeing
Access to education
Youth advocacy
Commemorating Viva’s 30th anniversary
Capacity-building for network members
Network development:
Network membership growth
Supporting new networks in other regions of countries with existing networks
Strengthening the network’s understanding of and response to children’s issues
Strengthening the focus and vision of existing networks within a city
This sharing helped us see both the diversity of work across the network and the common priorities that unite us.
The final part of the forum focused on online safety, which will be the theme of our next three Global Network Online Forums, from February to April. Four short videos helped spark discussion around the realities children are facing in the digital world, including online exploitation, cyberbullying, mental health, and the role of parents and caregivers. Please watch them below.
We also heard powerful reflections from several networks on the importance of education, accountability, resilience, and advocacy to protect children’s wellbeing online.
To help shape the upcoming forums, we invite you to complete this short poll asking which online safety topics you would most like us to explore together. Your input will directly inform the content of the next sessions, so please do take the time to respond.
Thank you!
Thank you for starting the year with such openness, reflection, and commitment to learning together. If you were not able to make the Forum but would like to catch up with what was shared, you can view the recording here.
We look forward to continuing these conversations at our next Global Network Online Forum on Wednesday, 11 February.