The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) convened a two-day youth leadership workshop on 7-8 May 2026 in Bali, Indonesia.
The workshop is part of a broader UNOCT initiative on Building Safer Online Gaming Communities in Southeast Asia funded by the Department of Home Affairs of Australia and implemented in coordination with, Indonesia’s National Counter Terrorism Agency (BNPT), the Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter-Terrorism (SEARCCT), and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI).
Bringing together a select cohort of young content moderators from Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, the workshop strengthened the capacity of participants to address online harms in gaming environments through a prevention-focused lens. Participants shared practical, experience-based insights into how risks manifest across gaming and gaming-adjacent platforms and worked to translate these into actionable approaches for safer and more resilient online communities.
In opening video remarks, Mr. Dionnisius Elvan Swasono, Director for Regional and Multilateral Cooperation, Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Terorisme (BNPT) - National Counter Terrorism Agency of Indonesia, emphasized that, "Preventing violent extremism in today’s digital era requires us to move beyond conventional approaches. We must empower young people as active partners in building resilient online communities, particularly within gaming spaces where both opportunities and risks continue to evolve.”
In the opening remarks, a spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta noted that “Online gaming has become a powerful platform for connection, including across countries and cultures. That’s why it is so important that young people are able to access these spaces safely.”
Over two days, participants engaged in structured sessions on navigating complex online interactions, managing high-risk scenarios, and fostering inclusive digital spaces. The programme included live simulation exercises and practical modules on policy engagement and communication, enabling participants to apply skills in realistic scenarios.
A key outcome of the workshop was the advancement of a youth-led handbook for gaming moderators, grounded in the lived experiences of participants and designed to support practical application across diverse gaming contexts.
The workshop builds on ongoing research under the initiative, generating locally grounded evidence on violent extremism in gaming environments across Southeast Asia. These findings, together with training workshop outcomes, will inform the national policy dialogues in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines scheduled for August–September 2026.
UNOCT is committed to supporting Member States and stakeholders in addressing the evolving use of digital environments by terrorist actors, their supporters, and sympathizers, including in gaming spaces, through prevention-focused, inclusive, and evidence-based approaches.
For more information: Laurence Gerard, gerardl@un.org, Public Information Officer, UNOCT
