The Demographic challenges and (not only) legal responses Conference was held online on 26 January 2024. There were 13 speakers of the conference, which was chaired by Dr Edit Sápi. After the welcoming speech of the Chair, the presentations were started.
The first speaker of the conference was Ammar Alqatawna with his presentation on the role of artificial intelligence in demography challenges. Ammar opened his presentation by outlining the connection between AI and demographic change, and how AI can be used to address and solve a variety of demographic problems. The application of AI in demography leverages advanced computational capabilities to analyse large data sets, model complex population dynamics, and provide insights that can inform policy- and decision-making. In the second half of the presentation, he examined the main demographic challenges facing Europe and the role of artificial intelligence. He argued that Europe is facing a major challenge of demographic change, for which technology offers the most obvious solution, so it is crucial to harness the power of AI to manage the impact of demographic change.
Dr. Petra Fráter-Bihari examined the effects of the social media platforms, the social media influencers and their dangers on the children’s rights and their life. She considered the behaviour of parents in the digital space to be particularly dangerous, as their children often suffer rights violations. Petra complemented her presentation with a number of statistics on the purposes for which users use the internet and social media. In the second part of her presentation, she explained all the reasons why it is justified to say that social media platforms are a danger for children. After a definition of influencers and an introduction to their activities in the online space, we were introduced to the problem of two relatively recent phenomena, namely the influencer child and the child influencer.
The next speaker, Huthaifa Albustanji, in his presentation on the impact of demographic elements on cybersecurity awareness, drew attention to the key importance of promoting cybersecurity practices and fostering behavioural and cultural change through the educational process, starting with children, through young people, to older users. Poverty is a demographic challenge for cybersecurity awareness, as it is closely linked to population dynamics and demographics. However, there are a number of barriers to spreading awareness, in particular demographic challenges such as the age of the target population, individuals with limited education and poor areas. Huthaifa believes that an international cybersecurity treaty could be a viable solution, as it would establish guidelines for promoting awareness among member states before implementation.
The next presenter was Somayyeh Soltanibahrehmand with her presentation entitled tech solutions: innovations in the face of demographic changes. She opened her speech with an
overview of current technology solutions to demographic change. Somayyeh also discussed the various health innovations targeting the ageing population as a primary audience. These innovations include, for example, remote health services, whereby older people can access quality medical care from the comfort of their own homes. On the other hand, artificial intelligence is being used to develop tools to help the elderly manage their medication. In addition, Somayyeh spoke about educational technologies that adapt to different types of learning needs. Smart cities with renewable energy sources, green public transport and infrastructure can be a new technological solution to improve the quality of life of residents. Her viewpoint is that the technological solutions presented in his presentation will break down demographic barriers, meet the needs of a global population and promote cross-border cooperation.
In his presentation on ageing, low fertility rates and unstable partnerships as Europe’s main demographic challenges, Dr. András Pári presented a number of statistical data (e.g. population and fertility projections, ageing index, migration, population of Europe, marriage, etc.), which allow us to conclude that Europe and the European Union are undergoing a major demographic transformation, which will shape the future of the continent in social, cultural, economic and competitive terms. Unfortunately, the birth rate and the number of marriages, which are the precursor to childbearing, are on a downward trend. However, Hungary is an exception, with the highest increase in fertility and marriage rates in the European Union between 2010 and 2022. In conclusion, Europe’s population is expected to decline in the coming decades, which countries are trying to ‘cure’ with different policies. Hungary’s pro-birth and pro-family policy, which has been in place since 2010, is one of the most prominent.
Hanin Ghanem‘s presentation focused on the aging as one of the demographic challenges in the Arab world. The increase in the number of elderly people poses significant challenges to these countries, their economies, their various care systems and their legal frameworks. But what impact can ageing have? One possible impact is changing demographics, such as increasing life expectancy and declining fertility. Economic implications include labour market challenges and changes in pension systems, the sustainability of which requires careful planning and possible reforms. Increased health challenges and long-term care services may also pose challenges. In concluding her presentation, Hanin outlined some possible solutions to the problems of ageing, such as strengthening the health care system, collecting data on older people and the issues that affect them, and integrating issues affecting older people into national development plans.
The presentation by Anita Klimas gave us a closer look at the problems and challenges of working with seniors in conditions of penitentiary isolation. A significant proportion of prisoners are ageing while serving long-term, especially life sentences. As time goes on, needs change and the need to protect their health and prepare for dying or death becomes more
important, as the latter process makes the prisoner more withdrawn and less likely to talk to others. In addition to this, older people in prison are distrustful of the prison system and the people around them, and therefore see no point in contact with the outside world. As a result of this gradual weakening, prisoners become increasingly helpless and dependent on others, and their lack of participation in social life reinforces the negative life balance of incarcerated older people.
The next speaker was Dr. Laura Kovács-Berényi, who gave a presentation on current issues regarding work-life balance. It is indisputable that creating and maintaining harmony between the two is one of the most important challenges in our daily lives. At the same time, the overall well-being and satisfaction of the employee is a key factor, which is reflected in the highest possible productivity and efficiency on the part of the employer organisation. Of particular importance is the issue of reconciling work and starting a family, as well as the issue of labour law solutions to support childbearing and parenting. The Hungarian Labour Code has also been amended in line with the current objectives of the EU legislative process. In addition to all these issues, Laura also addressed the relevant parts of the EU and Hungarian labour law acquis.
Ivana Marković‘s presentation gave us an insight into Serbia’s encouraging childbirth policy. It is an indisputable fact that childbearing has a direct impact on population growth and the age structure of the population. However, it can perform these two crucial demographic functions only if the level of growth meets the minimum requirements for population renewal. Any birth rate that prevents population growth is therefore considered insufficient, leading to depopulation and excessive ageing. After the introductory thoughts, Ivana shared with us a number of interesting statistics on Serbian demographics and fertility rates.
Returning to the field of labour law, Domagoj Dalbello gave a presentation on work-life balance and motivation for parenthood among (future) fathers. He began his presentation by outlining the importance of fatherhood, the role of the father in child-rearing, and the challenges faced by families where the father is not involved in family life. Domagoj focused on the key role of the father and mother in child-rearing, highlighting their complementary ‘functions’. He also explained the impact of the father’s presence on the emotional development of the child. Then he highlighted the specificities of men’s motivation to parent and how they balance work and family success. Last but not least, he concluded his speech by presenting different ways to better involve fathers in child-rearing.
Denisa Kotrousova‘s presentation focused on the assisted reproduction and demographic challenges from a Czech perspective. Assisted reproduction is a set of techniques for the treatment of infertility that can be analysed from different perspectives, but in this presentation Denisa focused on the demographic aspect. After analysing the Czech legislation on assisted
reproduction and a number of demographic statistics, the conclusion is that the demographic situation in the Czech Republic is not bad, although the natural increase in the population is decreasing year by year. However, assisted reproduction is a tool that can help to increase the number of children born, but the success rate is not high, so it seems more appropriate to combine it with other means to promote population growth.
Silvie Konopková examined the legal aspects of the performance of institutional and protective education in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Denmark. From the introductory reflections, we learnt that in the Czech Republic there are several types of institutions where, with the exception of children’s homes, children in institutional care and children in care can live together. The main question of her presentation was whether children’s rights are violated in these institutions, in particular the right of the child to have contact with the world outside the institution, which is enshrined in international treaties. In Denmark, unlike the Czech Republic, most children live in foster care, and as a result more specialised services are provided, and any restriction of a child’s rights is approached on the basis of why they were placed in the institution in question. In Slovakia, the concept of ‘professional’ parents is emerging, which is somewhat different from foster care. Children living with professional parents are subject to less formal rules on their access to the outside world.
Last but not least, the last speaker was Raheleh Soltanibahrehmand. Her presentation was on managing demographic diversity through EU Civil Code harmonization. The possibility of a comprehensive EU civil code, harmonising divergent national laws on issues such as contracts, torts and family disputes, sparked a lively debate. Supporters argue that consistent rules could reduce cross-border transaction costs and overcome fragmentation, facilitating labour mobility and market growth in the face of demographic change. But critics stress the importance of maintaining national pluralism as opposed to imposing uniformity for its own sake. In socially and culturally embedded areas such as inheritance, marriage and child custody, the need for subsidiarity is also often voiced.
