SEA Changemakers
We’re promoting digital resilience among youth and civil society in Southeast Asia (SEA).
SEA Changemakers fosters digital resilience and citizenship among youth and civil society in three Southeast Asian countries: Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam. We work with local partners to support public outreach, digital safety training, and research and advocacy on the Internet landscape.
Since 2014, we’ve been supporting the changemaker generation: digital natives aged 18-25. They’re the ones leading the way as Internet use skyrockets across Southeast Asia, especially on social media. They’re also the ones who can champion safe, strong digital citizenship on the road ahead. Together, they can help their communities thrive in the global digital economy—without leaving vulnerable populations behind.
We build on the work of local civil society and researchers, while adapting the Foundation’s unique CyberSTAR digital safety framework. For organizations, CyberSTAR offers an integrated pathway that runs from safety audits through remediation and training. For everyone, it makes the digital safety universe accessible by framing it as six points of a star: risks, identity, passwords, conversations, devices and data.
How we promote digital resilience:
Outreach: Especially through social media, we’re raising awareness of how to stay safe online—and we help youth take the reins. For instance, in Vietnam, the Chong Hack digital safety brand is now curated by Vietnet-ICT and members of the Youth Internet Governance Forum committee we helped establish.
Training: Our digital safety trainers offer localized courses to individuals and civil society organizations— based on the Foundation’s CyberSTAR framework. We’re also curating web portals with online assessments and course materials, like Vietnam’s Digital Safety Hub and Myanmar’s DigiSecLab.
Research & advocacy: Focussing on vulnerable communities, we show how digital resilience supports national goals. We support local stakeholders’ advocacy to integrate safety into national digital strategies—including through Youth Internet Governance Forum initiatives.