Effective child protection starts by listening to children. Yet too often, the policies and systems designed to protect them are developed without their voices. We partnered with ECPAT International to develop the communication campaign for Children Know Better. The initiative explores how meaningful child participation can transform the way societies understand, prevent and respond to the sexual exploitation of children. Building on children’s lived experiences, the campaign challenged decision-makers to share power and place children’s perspectives at the centre of child protection.
A child participation campaign rooted in children’s experiences
Children understand the risks they face in ways that adults often cannot. They know which places feel unsafe, which systems fail to protect them and what meaningful participation should look like. Yet child protection policies are still largely designed by adults, with children’s contributions often limited to consultation rather than genuine influence.
As part of the Children Know Better initiative, child researchers in Nepal and Bangladesh led research with their peers, identifying the issues they believed adults needed to understand. The project sought to ensure these findings reached policymakers, educators, civil society organisations and child protection practitioners.
Turning child-led research into advocacy
Our role was to translate these child-led insights into a campaign that challenged traditional assumptions about expertise and decision-making.
Working closely with ECPAT International, we developed the campaign narrative, key messaging and creative strategy around a simple but powerful idea: children are experts in their own lives. The campaign questioned adult-led systems that too often dismiss children’s experiences or reduce participation to symbolic consultation. Instead, it called for responsible power-sharing, recognising children’s knowledge as essential evidence for better decision-making.
By grounding every message in children’s own words and experiences, the campaign encouraged audiences not only to listen, but to rethink how decisions affecting children are made. This approach reflected the campaign’s central message: Children know better. Listen and act.
Creating a campaign designed for action
To support global advocacy, we developed a complete communication system designed for use across digital platforms and stakeholder engagement.
This included campaign messaging, scripts, social media content, animated videos, policy briefs and visual assets that translated complex research into clear, engaging stories. Every piece was designed to reinforce a consistent narrative while remaining accessible to diverse audiences, from policymakers and educators to civil society organisations and the wider public. The short animations and social media content combined child testimonies with bold messaging to encourage meaningful dialogue.
By placing children’s experiences at the centre of every message, Children Know Better reframed participation as more than consultation. It demonstrated how strategic communication can help shift power, strengthen child protection and encourage institutions to move from listening to acting alongside children.
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