countries, child labour, domestic work or increasing educational demands serve to reduce the time available for the enjoyment of these rights. This general comment has been developed to address these concerns, raise the profile, awareness and understanding among States of the centrality of the rights in article 31 in the life and development of every child, and urge them to elaborate measures to ensure their implementation. The rights in article 31 have universal application in the diversity of communities and societies in the world and respect the value of all cultural traditions and forms. Every child should be able to enjoy these rights regardless of where he or she lives, his or her cultural background or his or her parental status. This general comment only touches tangentially on the issue of sport, as it is a major issue in its own right. In respect of cultural life, the general comment focuses primarily on aspects related to creative or artistic activities, rather than the broader definition embraced in article 30 on the right of the child to enjoy his or her own culture. II.Objectives The present general comment seeks to enhance the understanding of the importance of article 31 for children’s well-being and development; to ensure respect for and strengthen the application of the rights under article 31, as well as other rights in the Convention, and to highlight the implications for the determination of: (a)Consequent obligations of States in the elaboration of all implementation measures, strategies and programmes aimed at the realization and full implementation of the rights defined in article 31; (b)The role and responsibilities of the private sector, including companies working in the areas of recreation, cultural and artistic activities, as well as civil society organizations providing such services for children; (c)Guidelines for all individuals working with children, including parents, on all actions undertaken in the area of play and recreation. III.Significance of article 31 in children’s lives Article 31 must be understood holistically, both in terms of its constituent parts and also in its relationship with the Convention in its entirety. Each element of article 31is mutually linked and reinforcing, and when realized, serves to enrich the lives of children. Together, they describe conditions necessary to protect the unique and evolving nature of childhood. Their realization is fundamental to the quality of childhood, to children’s entitlement to optimum development, to the promotion of resilience and to the realization of other rights. Indeed, environments in which play and recreational opportunities are available to all children provide the conditions for creativity; opportunities to exercise competence through self-initiated play enhances motivation, physical activity and skills development; immersion in cultural life enriches playful interactions; rest ensures that children have the necessary energy and motivation to participate in play and creative engagement. Play and recreation are essential to the health and well-being of children and promote the development of creativity, imagination, selfconfidence, self-efficacy, as well as physical, social, cognitive and emotional strength and skills. They contribute to all aspects of learning; they are a form of participation in everyday life and are of intrinsic value to the child, purely in terms of the enjoyment and pleasure they afford. Research evidence highlights that playing is also central to children’s spontaneous drive for development, and that it performs a significant role in the development of the brain, particularly in the early years. Play and recreation facilitate children’s capacities to negotiate, regain emotional balance, resolve conflicts and make decisions. Through their involvement in play and recreation, children learn by doing; they explore and experience the world around them; experiment with new ideas, roles and experiences and in so doing, learn to understand and construct their social position within the world. Both play and recreation can take place when children are on their own, together with their peers or with supportive adults. Children’s development can be supported by loving and caring adults as they relate to children through play. Participation with children in play provides adults with unique insights and understanding into the child’s perspectives. It builds respect between generations, contributes to effective understanding and communication between children and adults and affords opportunities to provide guidance and stimulus. Children benefit from recreational activities involving adults, including voluntary participation in organized sports, games and other recreational activities. However, the benefits are diminished, particularly in the development of creativity, leadership and team spirit if control by adults is so pervasive that it undermines the child’s own efforts to organize and conduct his or her play activities. Involvement in a community’s cultural life is an important element of children’s sense of belonging. Children inherit and experience the cultural and artistic life of their family, community and society, and through that process, they discover and forge their own sense of identity and, in turn, contribute to the stimulation and sustainability of cultural life and traditional arts. In addition, children reproduce, transform, create and transmit culture through their own imaginative play, songs, dance, animation, stories, painting, games, street theatre, puppetry, festivals, and so on. As they gain understanding of the cultural and artistic life around them from adult and peer relationships, they translate and adapt its meaning through their own generational experience. Through engagement with their peers, children create and transmit their own language, games, secret worlds, fantasies and other cultural knowledge. Children’s play generates a “culture of childhood,” from games in school and in the playground to urban activities such as playing marbles, free running, street art and so on. Children are also at the forefront in using digital platforms and virtual worlds to establish new means of communication and social networks, through which different cultural environments and artistic forms are being forged. Participation in cultural and artistic activities are necessary for building children’s understanding, not only of their own culture, but other cultures, as it provides opportunities to broaden their horizons and learn from other cultural and artistic traditions, thus contributing towards mutual understanding and appreciation of diversity.