2007/01/29 NEW!!

Celebrating Safer Internet Day Across the World

Almost 40 countries will participate in the fourth edition of Safer Internet Day (SID) which this year takes place on 6 February. The event is organised by European Schoolnet, coordinator of Insafe, the European safer internet network (www.saferinternet.org). Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for the Information Society and Media is once again patron of Safer Internet Day, as in the past two years.

The highlight of the day will once again be a worldwide blogathon, which will reach Australia on 6^th February and progress westward through the day to finish up in the USA and Canada. Following the huge success encountered in 2006, this year’s blogathon goes one step further to include the voices of hundreds of youngsters. In the framework of a competition launched in October 2006, more than 200 schools in 25 countries across the globe have been working in pairs, using technology to cross geographical borders, to create internet safety awareness material on one of three themes: e-privacy, netiquette, and power of image. On Safer Internet Day, all of the projects they have produced will be uploaded to the blogathon.

The 4 prize-winning teams in the competition will be announced on 6 February when the blogathon opens to well over 100 organisations waiting on the starting block to add their postings on this year’s theme, Crossing borders..

To find out more about young people’s use of the internet and mobile phones, Insafe has been collecting data over the past two months through an online survey (http://insafe-survey.eun.org/). Preliminary results will be made available on Safer Internet Day along with a wealth of other information tailored to the needs of not only media but also parents, teachers and youngsters in an online media room specially set up at www.saferinternet.org to mark the event.

On Safer Internet Day in the Netherlands, HRH Princess Maxima will be the special guest at an event featuring theatre, music and stories. In Slovenia, young people will showcase art projects and Slovenian national television will broadcast internet safety clips. Across the globe, hundreds of other events will highlight the growing importance of internet safety in the lives of us all.

Further information:

European Schoolnet

Janice Richardson

Tel: +32 790 75 75

Info-Insafe@eun.org

Media room – press kit for journalists

Sofia.Aslanidou@eun.org

www.saferinternet.org

Online survey

Alexa.Joyce@eun.org

Insafe:

www.saferinternet.org

National nodes of Insafe:

http://www.saferinternet.org/ww/en/pub/insafe/focus.htm

Safer Internet Day Blogathon:

http://blog.eun.org/SID2007

Safer Internet Programme:

http://europa.eu.int/information_society/activities/sip/index_en.htm

eTwinning (partner in the Safer Internet Day competition for schools):

http://www.etwinning.net

About European Schoolnet:

European Schoolnet (www.europeanschoolnet.org) is a unique not-for-profit consortium of 28 ministries of education in Europe created in 1997. It provides major European education portals for teaching, learning and collaboration and leads the way in bringing about change in schooling through the use of new technology.

About Insafe

European Schoolnet coordinates the European Safer Internet network, Insafe (http://www.saferinternet.org), which aims to empower citizens to use the Internet, as well as other information and communication technologies, safely, ethically and effectively. The network is funded by the European Commission’s Directorate General for the Information Society and Media. It comprises 26 national nodes which work together in close partnership in 24 countries across Europe and with three associated nodes, in Argentina, Australia and the USA.

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