Read our Blog
By following the Seen and Heard blog you can read how our research is progressing in Malta, Germany and Poland.
Further research evidence on some of the projects discussed can also be found in our Gallery.
Times in Between: Perspectives from Berlin
We both feel honoured and grateful to have been invited to share our perspectives as two young participants at the Seen & Heard conference in Malta. For both of us, the conference was far more than an academic gathering.
My First Conference Experience
My name is Juliette Roux, I’m a BA Drama and Creative Writing student in my second year at Royal Holloway in the UK.
I joined the Seen and Heard project around November of 2025. At first, I was asked to play a small role of helping out with registration on the days of the conference, which turned into working on the social media page, which turned into being on the organising committee.
To be a child, once more
“All children, except one, grow up.”
Peter Pan, J. M. Barrie
I close my eyes as tightly as possible and try to remember myself as a young girl. I remember refusing pink. I remember not wanting to sleep at 8 p.m. I remember refusing to eat animals that looked like what they were. There were days when I refused to go to school, and days when I refused to stay at home. I refused not to scribble notes in my
Seen and Heard: Creative Journeys into Children’s Rights
In this post Katarzyna Salejko describes a suite of Human Rights Education (HRE) resources for teachers which draw on creative pedagogy, inquiry-based learning and community-based approaches.
The Role of Human Rights Education in Amplifying Children’s Voices
Freedom of expression is the right that demands special safeguarding for children because, unlike adults, they are often not seen as fully capable of forming or expressing valid opinions. Their voices are frequently dismissed by parents, teachers, and policymakers, limiting their ability to influence decisions that affect them.
On drawing and togetherness, everywhere and anywhere
In his fourth drawing workshop for young Seen and Heard participants, former UK Children’s Laureate Chris Riddell sketches some of his favourite subjects and invites the children to draw whatever they like.
Children’s Rights in Our Hands
Sita Brahmachari’s visit to Malta took the project up another notch. To re-wilding, now more than ever.
Seen and Heard Protest Videos: Thinking through Tech
How can today’s technologies make youths feel seen and heard? Audiovisual director Charlie Cauchi weighs in.
Young People Speaking Up for Themselves
With Seen and Heard, our aim is to demarginalise young people and give them space that they may not otherwise have due to their context, to voice their concerns and opinion. Words by Dr. Mateusz Świetlicki.
Interdisciplinary EmPOWERment
Wherever we are, be it in the museum, theatre or at the university, we surround ourselves with different art forms, to familiarise ourselves with various strategies in order to help children to be Seen and Heard. Words by Dr. Farriba Schulz.
I Hear The Sound of People Drawing, It’s Quiet and Soft…
Chris Riddell explains that drawing can help us to express how we feel, what has happened to us in our life and what we dream of or desire – the stepping stone towards Seen and Heard’s mission, freedom of expression. Words by Dr Giuliana Fenech.
Nothing about us without us!
There are over 600 young people of over 50 nationalities involved in this project, aged 11 to 14 (both children and adolescents), speaking at least eight languages between them. Many are refugees and migrants, most are from marginalised communities. How can we genuinely enable their participation in one small book? Nicky Parker, from Amnesty International Poland, runs us through their philosophy and how this will be integrated in Seen and Heard.
Acting Together for Change
Children’s participation in social and political life and intergenerational connectivities that may emerge once adults recognize young peoples’ agencies have for a long time been at the heart of my research – both in my theoretical work and in practice. I was engaged in several projects in which I collaborated with children as co-researchers actively shaping the research process.
Staying in Faith when Things Get Complex
Young people’s right to freedom of expression is a complex matter on many levels. Firstly, very few young people are educated about their human rights. Secondly, geopolitical context often dictates the level of risk involved in speaking out and up about injustice. Thirdly, various adult stakeholders are involved in ensuring or oppressing young people’s right to express themselves; parents and guardians, school management and teachers, government officials and legislators, and the list could go on.
