What Is Literacy?
The word literacy is defined as the ability to read, write, speak and listen in a way that lets us communicate effectively and make sense of the world.
Everyone in Their Own World
Imagine a family sitting around the table. Everyone is looking at their own screen. Everyone sees different images, uses different words, and follows different sources. But are we still really talking to each other about what matters most?
Looking, Reading and Listening Together
What happens when we put our screens aside for a moment and look at one story together? We read, talk, ask questions, and listen to each other. That is how children and adults can work together to better understand the world. That is literacy in action.
Norway’s Prime Minister: Listen to Children
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre spoke directly to ChildPress about why children’s voices matter in politics. Children will live longest with the decisions being made today, he said — and that gives adults and politicians a responsibility to listen.
“We really should take children’s concerns seriously, because they will live with the consequences of politics. There are rights to be heard, to be seen, to be listened to.”
When ChildPress asked about the biggest challenges facing children today, the Prime Minister turned the question back to young people — a reminder that adults do not always know best.
“I think you are so good at answering that — I don’t have all the answers.”
To understand children’s lives, he suggested, we need to ask children themselves — and listen.
Watch · Jonas Gahr Støre in conversation with ChildPress
We Met Malala — From One Voice to Collective Action
Today at Arendalsuka, ChildPress reporters had the chance to meet Malala Yousafzai.
Malala’s story shows what can happen when a child sees something that is wrong, finds the courage to speak, and reaches adults who are able to listen and act.
For ChildPress, that is also the bigger question: what needs to happen after a child speaks?
The three videos below explore that journey. Maria Ressa shows why young voices need journalism, facts and people willing to hold power accountable. Kjersti Fløgstad of the Nobel Peace Center shows how listening and dialogue can help turn different perspectives into understanding and peace. And Political Bomb, created by young people at Arendalsuka, shows what happens when young people and decision-makers actually meet, question each other and search for solutions together.
Malala reminds us of the power of one voice. But lasting change needs more than one courageous child. It needs journalists, teachers, politicians, peacebuilders, youth workers and many others who are prepared to hear that voice and do something with it.
From one voice
to journalism
to dialogue
to collective action.
Who needs to hear the child — and who can help turn their words into change?
In the Spotlight
From Collective Blindness to Collective Action
Children need adults who listen — but listening alone is not enough. Too often, adults suffer from a kind of collective blindness: we decide things about children without really seeing what they live every day. Breaking that blindness takes many people, each from their own role — parents and teachers, journalists and librarians, police and youth workers, politicians, mayors, researchers and organisations. One person sees the problem, another understands it, and someone else has the power to act.
At Arendalsuka, ChildPress reporters went looking for exactly these people, and asked what they can actually do when children speak up. Together they form the Dream Team around every child: the network that can turn a child’s voice into action — and help us end the collective blindness.
Fifteen minutes a day — the idea Norway’s mayors are backing
A member of parliament wants every school day to begin with the news. Three mayors told our reporters they’re in. Behind it lies a bigger question: how much do grown-ups really see of a child’s day online?
Politicians listen all the time, says MP Haagen Poppe — but rarely to children. His proposal is simple: around fifteen minutes every day when a class looks at the news, talks about it, and is actually listened to. Not only to read the headlines, but to learn what editorial media even are — where sources get checked and different perspectives get weighed — alongside the social media that already fills their mornings.
Watch · MP Haagen Poppe at Arendalsuka
Go to your mayor. Your local mayor is the one that has the key to change really efficiently.Haagen Poppe · Member of Parliament
Poppe argues the change has to be systemic — put “from the top into every school” — and warns that youth councils, on their own, often reach children too late. It is a small idea with a large claim behind it: a country stays a democracy only if its youngest citizens grow up with the facts, and with the sense that someone is listening.
Who Listens?
Being heard is not only about being allowed to speak. It means that someone is listening early enough for a child’s ideas to still make a difference. At Arendalsuka, ChildPress reporters spoke with politicians and young political leaders about how children and young people can take part in democracy — not only through youth councils, but in real conversations, debates and decisions.
These interviews ask a simple question: who is actually listening? And just as importantly: what happens after a child has spoken? A strong democracy needs more than the loudest or most confident voices. It needs systems that make room for every child to be heard, taken seriously and included before decisions are already made.
Mayors at Arendalsuka
Who helps children make a difference?
We’ve found that it is often people at the local community level who are able to step forward when they are needed. In politics and public administration, mayors can play an important role by supporting children in practical ways — making sure they are heard and helping turn their ideas into action.
During Arendalsuka this year, we have been talking to mayors from across Norway to find out what they know about their own youth council (ungdomsråd), its members and activities, and what they can do to support them.
AI, Algorithms and Truth: ChildPress meets Norway’s Chief of Defence
How do we know what information we can trust in a world shaped by social media, algorithms and AI? ChildPress reporters asked Norway’s Chief of Defence about the influence of big tech, the importance of critical thinking and the military’s growing use of artificial intelligence. He sees major opportunities in AI — especially for analysing large amounts of information — but also warns that it must be used wisely, with control over data and an understanding of what is true and what is fake.
Breaking Collective Blindness
Collective blindness begins when adults make decisions about children while seeing only part of their world. The solution is not simply to ask children what they think. Their knowledge has to reach the people who can act on it.
These four conversations show what that can look like: protecting children’s rights, treating young people as partners, opening the doors of politics — and finally changing real decisions because children were heard.
Reports from the Arendalsuka Special
ChildPress reports from the Arendalsuka Special, exploring our themes of democracy & education and safety.
Never give up on making your voice heard
ChildPress Chief Editor Chace speaks with Lars, leader of the Youth Progress Party in Norway, about why young people should take part in politics and help shape the society they will inherit.
Lars says young people may sometimes be told they are too young or inexperienced, but they should keep learning, participating and speaking up. He believes mayors can play an important role by listening when children and young people come together to ask for change in their schools and communities. His advice is simple: never give up, stay engaged and keep fighting for what is important to you.
Young people need a real place in politics
ChildPress Chief Editor Chace speaks with Sara Uda Hasle, leader of the Socialist Youth Party in Norway, about why young people should be involved in politics.
Sara says young people can make a real difference when political parties listen to them and take their ideas seriously. But fear of hate comments can stop some from getting involved. Looking back at her hometown of Sandefjord, she would like local leaders to invest more in schools and in activities for young people — including opportunities beyond sports. Her story shows why communities need to listen to what young people themselves say they need.
Bringing children into democracy earlier
Member of the Norwegian parliament Haagen Poppe speaks with ChildPress about why children should have a stronger voice in political decision-making.
He argues that youth councils are often involved too late, when important decisions have already been made. Children should be able to meet mayors, politicians and decision-makers much earlier and more easily. He also calls for more children on panels at Arendalsuka and for schools to make daily space for news, facts and discussion about society.
Giving students a voice in Grimstad
ChildPress Chief Editor Chace speaks with Mia, a student from Grimstad, about what young people need in their school and community.
Mia would like a school newspaper where students can share what is happening, express what they feel and make their ideas visible. She also wishes for more places where young people can meet and have fun. Her story shows how giving students their own media can strengthen their voice in the community.
Making schools safer for children
ChildPress reporters Erle and Fride speak with a representative from Skoleberedskap about school safety and the challenges children face.
They ask what he would do if he were 12 years old today, and what one thing he would change for children in Norway. His answer focuses on bullying and exclusion. The interview shows how young reporters can ask direct questions about everyday problems and invite adults to think about what they can do differently.
More from Arendalsuka
More interviews and reports from the ChildPress team at Arendalsuka 2026 — gathered in one place.
Explore who’s who at Arendalsuka
Who is shaping the conversation at Norway’s biggest democracy festival? Our interactive map lets you explore the ministers, mayors, educators, experts and young reporters gathered at Arendalsuka 2026 — and the sessions that bring them together.
Switch to the Street Map to see where participants come from, across Norway and around the world, or open the Town View, where everyone is sorted into colour-coded neighbourhoods. Hover over a profile to reveal names and roles, and filter by event to follow the debates that matter to you.
These events are a selection chosen by ChildPress, and we plan to cover a number of them ourselves. Children who would like to take part can join us as a ChildPress reporter and help report on these events too.
- Politics & governance
- Academics & experts
- Community & local voices
- Education
Dette så urettferdig altså! – da barna fikk sitt eget ombud
by Målfrid Grude Flekkøy and Tor Fretheim
This book tells the story behind the creation of the world’s first Ombudsman for Children in Norway. Its message connects strongly with ChildPress: children should not only be protected, but should also be able to speak out about what they feel is unfair and be taken seriously by adults and decision-makers.
For ChildPress reporters, this means that their questions, experiences and stories matter. By investigating what affects children, interviewing adults and showing who can actually make a difference, they put this principle into practice: children have a voice, and that voice deserves a place in society.