We must continue to strive for a world where every child grows up safe and secure, because every child – no matter where they grow up – has the right to be safe at home, at school, in their communities, and online. Though progress is happening, we are far from a tipping point. The fight for justice for children remains, and the level of commitment and investment is far from the scale of violence across the world – and the impact such violence has on children and communities. As practitioners, parents, friends, community members, faith leaders, policymakers, and researchers, we must act with urgency, and strengthen our movement to do more for children.

Collectively, we must work with and support each other’s efforts – and invest in the solutions that we know work. We need to push for stronger political will, strengthen data and evidence, and better inform policy, strategy, and investments across the world. We also need to work with one another to shift attitudes, change behaviors, and influence corporations and governments.

We must break the silence. Perhaps our fiercest enemy and our greatest shame is silence. The silence of the Neighbour who pretends she doesn’t hear the noises from next door; the silence of the young boy too terrified to speak out about the sexual abuse he is suffering at home; the silence preventing open dialogue between parents and their children on often taboo subjects; the silence of the teacher who does not ask about the bruises covering one of his pupils. This is a collective silence that must be broken for the sake of victims, survivors, and society.