A child plays with a mock submachine gun at a model Mass Transit Railway (MTR) station to mark the National Security Education Day at Hong Kong Police College in Hong Kong, China on April 15, 2021. The “education day” was organized to promote the sweeping legislation China imposed last year, marked with school activities, games and shows, and a parade by police and other services. (Photo by Tyrone Siu/Reuters)

Artist Christopher Lovell counts himself lucky to have been a child of the 80s. The toys, cartoons and movies of the era left him spellbound, fueling his imagination. He finds this inspiration allows him to express himself very naturally through his art. Having developed a deep interest in fantasy and sci-fi, he spent his childhood and teen years immersed in every aspect of creativity he could access.

146 West End Stars hold a flashmob in support of the non-profit organistation Love 146, which campaigns to end child s*x slavery and exploitation, at Trafalgar Sqaure on April 11, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Tim Whitby/Getty Images)

Child beauty pageants are a billion-dollar industry in the U.S. While some critics see the pageants as an exploitation of innocents, others—particularly pageant parents—view the competitions as a way for a young talent to enter the entertainment industry.

A reveler and a child street vendor pose for a photo during the Banda de Ipanema Carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, January 31, 2015. Rio's over-the-top Carnival is the highlight of the year for many local residents. Hundreds of thousands of merrymakers are beginning to take to the streets in open-air “blocos” parties. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo)

A child parades on a float during the Bun Festival on May 25, 2015 in Hong Kong, Hong Kong. One of Hong Kong's most colourful cultural celebration event, Cheung Chau Bun Festival, will be staged on 25 May 2015 (Monday) till 26 May 2015 midnight (Tuesday). This festival has over 100 years of history. Every year, thousands of people descend upon the tiny island for The Piu Sik (Floating Colours) Parade, Lucky Bun (Ping On Bun) and The Bun Scrambling Competition, the ancient custom during the festival. (Photo by Lam Yik Fei/Getty Images)

A group of dust covered child labourers gather for a portrait in the brick kiln in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, 22 February 2015. Bleak photos identify the children working their fingers to the bone in Nepalís brick kilns. Photographer Jan Mˆller Hansen documented the conditions of the brick kilns in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal between 2013 and 2016 while he lived and worked in the area. Jan estimates between 150,000 and 175,000 people are employed in the 200 brick kilns littering the Kathmandu Valley. (Photo by Jan Moeller Hansen/Barcroft Images)

As the world marks the International Day of the Girl Child, women's rights activists point to progress on a wide array of issues but say more needs to be done to protect girls from child marriage, sexual assault and other forms of exploitation. Here is a selection of pictures showing the daily lives of girls across the globe, all taken by female Associated Press photojournalists. Here: In this December 14, 2015, file photo, a young clown rides in the back of a car following a procession to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. Hundreds belonging to various clown associations made their annual pilgrimage to the Basilica to pay their respects to the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico's patron saint. (Photo by Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo)