DAY 1 - Monday 28th Oct

Prof Elizabeth Handsley, ACCM President

Elizabeth is the President of the Australian Council on Children and the Media, and a long-time advocate of regulations and policies to protect children’s interests as media users. As a Professor of Law at Flinders University, she has conducted research exploring the intersections between human rights, public health, consumer protection and media regulation. This work has focussed on advertising and marketing, especially of food and beverages, but has also extended to classification of violent content. Her co-edited collection Children’s Well-Being in the Media Age: Multidisciplinary Perspectives from the Harvard-Australia Symposium was published by Federation Press in 2015.

Dr Kim Le, Comedian and Child Psychiatrist

Adelaide comedian Kim Le is one of those annoying high achievers. A qualified child psychiatrist, Kim is also a black belt, is an awarded TEDx speaker, and now he’s performing at the Adelaide and Sydney Fringe Festivals. Kim has a special interest in gaming disorder and uses his humour to not only engage with audiences, but with also with his patients. In 2015, Kim was awarded a NSW Institute of Psychiatry Fellowship. He conducted an investigation at the Institute of Mental Health in Singapore on Internet Gaming Disorder. Kim founded CGI Clinic, a website to increase Internet awareness in the community. He currently has a dedicated outpatient clinic for the assessment of gaming disorder at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide and online via tele psychiatry.

“I am fascinated by the Internet gaming world and I have a passion for helping others enjoy gaming in a healthy way.” -Dr Le

Dr Susan Packer, Senior Australian of the Year

Since starting her career as a paediatrician in 1972, Dr Sue Packer AM has worked tirelessly to advocate for the rights of children. Sue has been a leader in child abuse prevention and treatment and a champion of the importance of early childhood environments for the developing brain.

Since starting her career as a paediatrician in 1972, Dr Sue Packer AM has worked tirelessly to advocate for the rights of children in our healthcare system and in the wider community.

She has been involved in child abuse prevention through the National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect since its very early days and has treated babies and children suffering terrible trauma from child abuse and neglect.

In addition, Sue has championed the importance of early childhood environments for the developing brain, leading to recognition by education and government agencies. Sue was one of the driving forces behind the acknowledgement of the importance of creating child-friendly spaces in hospitals and the value of play in recovery.

Presenting papers at conferences internationally and still volunteering on a number of boards to improve health and well-being of children . She maintains an interest in the adult lives of children she has seen. Sue stands up for the rights of children at every opportunity and encourages others to do the same.

Keynote Title - "Growing up digital"

Jessica Taylor Piotrowski, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Amsterdam School of Communication Research (ASCoR) at the University of Amsterdam (UvA). She is the Director of the Center for research on Children, Adolescents, and the Media (CcaM), the Program Group Leader for Youth & Media Entertainment at ASCoR, and recently completed a 4-year term as the Chair of Children, Adolescents, and the Media division of the International Communication Association – the largest academic division of children and media scholars worldwide. An award-winning scholar, Dr. Piotrowski’s research investigates how youth process and comprehend media content, with specific attention to the potential benefits of media. She is particularly focused on understanding how young users process media content (cognitively, affectively, and physiologically) and the role of individual differences (dispositional, developmental, and social) in the selection and processing of media content. In recent years, she has begun to dive deeply into the topic of digital literacy in childhood and adolescence.

Dr. Piotrowski frequently speaks at academic and trade conferences on the role of media in the lives of young people today. Moreover, with a strong belief in forging the divide between academic scholarship and societal practice, Dr. Piotrowski often shares her work in higher education classrooms, at public policy organizations, at children’s media organizations, and with childcare providers both within the Netherlands and worldwide. She is the co-author of the book Plugged In: How Media Attract and Affect Youth (Yale University Press, 2017) and regularly publishes in communication, psychology, and education journals.

Prof Leon Straker (Curtin U):
"Children’s screen use and development of muscles, bones and motor coordination"

Dr Kathy Chapman:
"Food ads and weight"

Prof Sarah Blunden (Australian Centre for Education in Sleep):
"The impact of media on children’s sleep"

Dr Alison Chiu (U of Sydney):
"Computer vision syndrome and children"

LEARN MORE

Keynote 2 and Panel 2:
Risks and benfits for cognitive development

Prof Mike Nagel: "Child development and digital media"

LEARN MORE

Panel:
Dr Michelle Neumann (Griffith U):
"The impact of apps on early literacy and language development"

Dr Kate Highfield (Early Childhood Australia):
"Cognitive engagement and reward structures"

LEARN MORE

Keynote 3 and Panel 3:
Technology traps for young players

Dr Serge Egelman (ICSI USA): “ Examining Privacy Behaviors of Mobile Apps at Scale"

LEARN MORE

Panel:
Dr Samantha Thomas (Deakin U):
"Keeping kids playing and paying"

David Gillespie (Qld):
"Teen brain: screens, depression, anxiety and addiction"

LEARN MORE

Dr William Garvey (RCH):
"Digital technology and neurodevelopmental paediatrics: the challenges and opportunities"

Dr Lisa Mundy (MCRI):
"Media use during the middle years: the effects on wellbeing and behaviour"

LEARN MORE

Dr Anthea Rhodes (Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne):
"Screen time: what’s happening in Australian homes-findings from the National Child Health Poll"

Brad Marshall:
"The Tech diet: clinical observations"

Assoc Prof Julie Green (Raising Children Network):
"Enabling parents in their children’s digital worlds"

LEARN MORE