At Away From Keyboard (AFK) Inc., advocacy is grounded in prevention, safeguarding, and the belief that safer digital futures require both community action and systems change.

Our work connects local experiences with broader conversations around digital safety, ethical technology, human rights, and emerging online harms. Through education, collaboration, and public engagement, AFK works to strengthen awareness, reduce vulnerability, and encourage prevention before harm escalates.

AFK’s advocacy includes:

• contributing submissions and responses to consultations relating to digital safety, ethical AI, online exploitation, and safeguarding 
• participating in forums, panels, and public discussions connected to technology-facilitated harm and community wellbeing 
• delivering workshops and prevention-focused education for children, carers, educators, and community groups 
• engaging in conversations around coercive control, scams, manipulation, and unsafe digital environments 
• promoting trauma-informed and human-centred approaches to technology and online participation 
• supporting greater recognition of technology-facilitated gender-based violence and emerging AI-related harms 
• strengthening awareness of upstream prevention and Safety by Design approaches 

AFK believes meaningful prevention requires collaboration across communities, educators, policymakers, advocacy organisations, and technology sectors.

Since 2023, AFK’s advocacy has contributed to national and international conversations relating to digital safety, ethical AI, safeguarding, and technology-facilitated harm.

AFK Founder Sarah Barnbrook has participated in discussions and engagements connected to:

• Commission on the Status of Women 69 and 70
• Geneva Peace Week
• United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific 
• World Intellectual Property Organization 
• human rights and ethical technology discussions 
• international forums connected to AI governance and digital safety 

This work focuses on translating emerging global risks into practical prevention conversations relevant to Australian communities.

Topics addressed through these engagements include:

• technology-facilitated gender-based violence 
• ethical AI and accountability 
• child safeguarding 
• online exploitation 
• coercive control 
• emotional impacts of unsafe digital environments 
• digital exclusion and vulnerability 
• prevention-focused approaches to technology governance 

AFK believes many harms discussed internationally are already affecting communities locally, particularly women, children, carers, neurodivergent individuals, and regional communities.

AFK’s advocacy extends beyond awareness and education into broader conversations around governance, systems design, and prevention-focused technology development.

AFK Founder Sarah Barnbrook serves as Co Vice-Chair for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Industry Connections Activity:
User-Centered Principles for Artificial Intelligence Used in Evaluating Family Violence.

This multidisciplinary work explores how artificial intelligence systems can better reflect:

• trauma-informed approaches 
• relational safety 
• human-centred design 
• vulnerability awareness 
• safeguarding principles 
• ethical governance 
• prevention-focused thinking 

AFK also contributes to broader discussions connected to:

• Safety by Design 
• ethical AI 
• upstream prevention 
• human rights due diligence 
• digital safeguarding 
• community-informed prevention approaches 
• technology-facilitated abuse prevention 
• accountability and transparency in emerging technologies 

This work reflects AFK’s belief that prevention must extend beyond individual awareness and into the systems, standards, and governance structures shaping digital environments and future technologies.

AFK recognises that digital harm is not solely the result of individual behaviour. Many risks are amplified by systems, platforms, algorithms, and technologies developed without sufficient consideration of safeguarding, vulnerability, relational safety, or human impact.

Through standards engagement, ethical AI advocacy, submissions, consultations, and governance discussions, AFK works to strengthen accountability and encourage safer systems before harm occurs.

This strengthens:

• criminology alignment 
• systems legitimacy 
• governance credibility 
• prevention sophistication

AFK’s work focuses on prevention before harm escalates.

Many forms of digital harm are difficult to measure once they occur because exploitation, coercion, manipulation, and emotional distress are often underreported or become visible only after significant harm has already taken place.

Through the Unsafe by Design framework, AFK focuses on reducing vulnerability by:

• strengthening safeguarding awareness 
• improving digital literacy 
• supporting informed community responses 
• increasing recognition of coercive and exploitative online behaviours 
• promoting safer digital participation 
• advocating for stronger upstream safeguards 
• encouraging ethical and human-centred technology approaches 

Since 2023, AFK has:

• contributed to international and national discussions relating to digital safety and ethical AI 
• delivered prevention-focused workshops and community education 
• participated in governance and policy discussions connected to online safety and safeguarding 
• contributed to conversations relating to coercive control, online exploitation, and emerging AI-related harms 
• developed the Alt-TAB upstream prevention framework 
• strengthened cross-sector engagement across governance, cybersecurity, criminology, violence prevention, and community wellbeing sectors 

AFK recognises that meaningful prevention often occurs before measurable crisis points emerge.

Our work aims to strengthen protective environments, support safer participation, and contribute to systems and communities that recognise and respond to emerging harms earlier.