The „Show Respect, React to Hate“ campaign for greater safety and security of children on the Internet was launched

PepsiCo's “Clipsy” brand, in cooperation with the European organization Propulsion and with the support of the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications, launched the "Show Respect – React to Hate" campaign, which aims to increase the safety of children in the digital environment, as well as raise awareness about violence on the Internet. 

At the event organized on this occasion, with the presence of media representatives, experts, and campaign partners, PepsiCo General Manager for the Southern Markets of Central Europe and the Baltic States, Nuno Pinto Leite, emphasized that young people should be encouraged and provided with tools to support them on the way to solving challenges that they face in the digital environment. 

“As a brand that primarily addresses teenagers, it was very important for us to address through responsible communication the challenges they often face. The communication platform "Respect for everything you are" sends a strong message to young people to remain authentic and be true to themselves, and this campaign is an additional call for them and their environment to contribute to building a safe digital environment. We want to support them in this, and that is why, with the help of our partners, we have created various tools and educational materials that we believe can be an additional incentive on this path”, said Pinto Leite. 

The State Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications in the Government of the Republic of Serbia, Milan Dobrijević, addressed the audience and emphasized the significance of inclusion of the economic sector in important social issues: 

“The Government of the Republic of Serbia, headed by Prime Minister Ana Brnabić, set digitalization and education as two key priorities in 2017. Our goal was for our children to start using the digital skills of the 21st century on a daily basis and for them to become a tool for learning, improvement, research, and entertainment, while trying to make the digital society in Serbia a safe digital environment at the same time. However, the development of digital technologies brings many good things to our children, but at the same time exposes them to numerous risks and temptations of the online environment. Awareness of cyberbullying must be developed from the earliest age, already with the first meeting and communication of children on the Internet. The Ministry of Information and Telecommunications, in partnership with the European organization Propulsion, has been working to combat digital violence for many years, and now for the first time we have been joined by a private partner – the PepsiCo company with its Clipsy brand. We all have a responsibility to jointly create a better and safer internet for our children. That's why we will start working even more intensively in the coming period and invite everyone, as the Clipsy brand did, to join us in this in the future.” 

Emina Beković, educator of the National Contact Center for Children's Safety on the Internet, as well as Dragan Ilić, radio and TV presenter and psychologist, spoke at the central panel discussion after the official address of the state secretary and general director. They shared their experiences on how to empower and educate young people, but also what is the role of the media in creating a safer digital environment. 

The campaign will last from September 18 to November 30, 2023, and during that period the unique educational platform clipsyprotivhejta.com will be launched, where guides for responding to and preventing digital violence will be available for young people, teachers, and parents. In addition to specially created guides, teams of 'Clipsy against hate' experts will conduct workshops for students in secondary schools throughout Serbia, with the aim of empowering and educating them about adequate and timely responses in such situations. Educators in the workshops will be experts from the National Contact Center for Children's Safety on the Internet – Smart and Safe.