Tech, Education, Impact & Ethics

I had the opportunity to serve as an advisor for the Responsible Innovation in Technology for Children (RITEC) initiative—a collaboration between UNICEF and the LEGO Group, with support from the LEGO Foundation. The initiative aimed to address a growing challenge: how to ensure that children’s well-being is prioritised in the digital products they engage with daily.

As digital platforms become more embedded in children’s lives—from education and socialising to gaming and entertainment—there is increasing urgency to ensure these technologies are not only safe, but meaningfully supportive of their development. RITEC set out to create practical tools and frameworks to help designers and developers embed child well-being into the heart of their work.

The result was the RITEC Design Toolbox, launched in late 2024. Developed through extensive consultation with over 750 children globally, the toolbox offers game developers and digital designers resources to create digital experiences that actively promote well-being. Central to this is the RITEC-8 framework, which outlines eight key domains for supporting children’s development: autonomy, competence, emotional regulation, relationships, creativity, identity, diversity, and safety.

The toolbox includes a range of accessible tools:

• An interactive card deck to explore well-being design features

• Printable posters and visuals that bring the RITEC-8 to life

• A shared vocabulary to help design teams talk meaningfully about children’s needs

• Quotes and insights from children, ensuring youth voice is front and centre

Being part of the advisory committee meant contributing to a truly collaborative process—one that engaged researchers, industry professionals, and child rights experts to ensure the tools were both grounded in evidence and practical for real-world use.

The importance of this work cannot be overstated. Too often, digital products are designed without considering the specific needs of children. RITEC challenges that norm and demonstrates that ethical, engaging, and developmentally appropriate digital design is not only possible—it’s necessary.

Participating in RITEC reinforced my belief that when children’s voices and well-being are integrated into digital innovation from the start, we unlock the full potential of technology to support them as learners, creators, and citizens.