Sometimes the biggest opportunities aren't planned, they begin with a simple conversation.

Back in April, Andy was attending a workshop at Games for Change Festival in London while I headed off to another insightful session. During a chat beforehand, one of the organisers casually mentioned there was another workshop taking place the following day and invited us both along.

At the time, we thought we'd simply be learning more about designing games for children.

We had no idea that it would lead us to becoming part of a global steering group that will help shape the future of a Community of Practice for the RITEC framework, working alongside game developers, researchers and organisations including UNICEF, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center (Sesame Workshop's independent research and innovation centre), and the LEGO Group.

It was a great reminder that just by turning up, going with the flow, asking questions and talking to people can lead you to unexpected places.

RITEC stands for Responsible Innovation in Technology for Children.

It's a global initiative led by UNICEF, alongside the LEGO Foundation, the LEGO Group, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center and Games for Change, with one simple but important goal:

How can we design digital experiences that genuinely support children's well-being, rather than simply keeping them engaged?

That question feels more relevant than ever.

Children spend a significant part of their lives playing, learning and socialising through digital experiences. Rather than focusing solely on limiting screen time or reducing risks, RITEC encourages developers to ask a different question:

How can games become positive spaces where children feel safe, capable, creative and connected?

If you're a parent, this means thinking beyond screen time and asking what children are actually experiencing while they play.

If you're designing games, it's a reminder that every design decision shapes more than engagement - it can influence confidence, creativity, relationships and emotional well-being too.

Years of research with children around the world led to the creation of the RITEC-8 Framework, which identifies eight dimensions that contribute to children's well-being through digital play:

• Safety & Security

• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

• Relationships

• Creativity

• Competence

• Autonomy

• Emotions

• Identities

Don’t panic game developers! The aim isn’t to deliver all eight areas.

In reality, the framework recognises that every game has different strengths. Safety and inclusion should always form the foundation, but developers are encouraged to intentionally focus on the areas that naturally fit the experience they're creating.

That simple shift in thinking makes the framework feel practical and achievable rather than an overwhelming to-do list (phew!).

Thankfully, we didn’t spend the day sitting through presentations as both workshops were highly interactive and collaborative - just our kind of workshop!

During Andy's first session at Games for Change, participants explored their own gaming memories before working together to improve an existing children's product using the RITEC framework.

One of the projects around the table was Teach Your Monster to Speak, an educational app helping children develop speech and language skills.

Designers, researchers, developers and educators all looked at the same product through slightly different lenses. Ideas ranged from reward balancing and progression systems to emotional attachment, relationships with virtual characters and helping children develop confidence without creating unnecessary pressure.

It was fascinating to see how the framework could help people from completely different backgrounds speak the same design language.

The following day took us to UKIE's offices in London for something quite different.

We thought it was a session to further discuss the framework itself, but instead, we were invited to help shape what happens next.

The session focused on building the RITEC Community of Practice - a growing international community where studios, researchers and organisations can share experiences, learn from each other and help establish children's well-being as a normal part of game development.

There were only nine attendees in the room, making it an open and collaborative discussion.

Together we explored questions such as:

• What resources would actually help studios?

• What would encourage developers to keep coming back?

• How should knowledge be shared?

• How can this become useful rather than another forgotten initiative?

Our ideas were captured alongside everyone else's and will help influence how the Community of Practice develops over the coming months.

For a small independent studio from South Wales, being able to contribute to conversations shaping how children's well-being is considered across the gaming industry was incredibly rewarding.

Since then we've continued joining webinars and Community of Practice sessions, hearing directly from studios, educators and researchers already putting these ideas into practice.

Something that kept popping up was that these products weren't built for children.

They were built with them.

Almost every speaker talked about involving children throughout development, testing ideas early, listening carefully, and being willing to change direction based on what they learned.

Some of the projects that really stood out:

Nurture is developing games designed to support children's emotional well-being, continually refining the experience through feedback from young players. What stuck with us about their process is that well-being isn't a checklist, it's something that's shaped by hundreds of small design decisions.

OctoStudio, developed by MIT's Lifelong Kindergarten Group, takes a completely different approach by encouraging families to create interactive projects together, helping children become creators rather than simply consumers.

Another fascinating project came from Social Cipher, exploring how games can better support neurodivergent children. An insight we loved was the importance of paying attention not only to what children say during testing, but also to what they don't say.

Although every project looked very different, they all shared one thing in common.

Children weren't treated as end users, they were treated as collaborators.

If you've been following our journey over the last couple of years, none of this should come as a huge surprise.

Much of what we've been doing through our research has centred around listening to young people, understanding their motivations and testing assumptions before building.

The RITEC framework reinforces something we've believed for a long time.

Games can (and should) be fun and entertaining.

But they can also help children build confidence, curiosity, empathy and meaningful connections when they're designed intentionally.

We're still learning too. That's one of the reasons we're so excited to be involved. Every conversation helps us make better decisions for the young people who'll eventually play our games.

We're already looking at how the framework can support future design decisions across the Hangry Animals ecosystem, from progression systems and reward loops to character relationships, emotional experiences and player choice.

Not because someone says we should.

Because it’s what young players and their parents want.

We're incredibly grateful to everyone we've met through RITEC over the last few months.

What started as a last minute workshop attendance has grown into ongoing conversations with people across the world who all share the same ambition: creating healthier digital experiences for children.

There's still plenty to learn and luckily, curiosity is one thing we've never struggled with. We’re looking forward to seeing how the Community of Practice evolves, how the Design Toolbox develops, and how studios begin applying these ideas in their own games.

We'll continue sharing what we discover along the way, because we believe these conversations matter.

Not just for developers.

But for parents, educators, charities and, most importantly, the young people who will grow up playing the games we create.

Until next time!

Stay Kind, Stay Curious, Stay Hangry.

Ceri & Andy

Hangry Animals 🐾

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