Over the previous month, I have posted blogs raising awareness about the risks and dangers ahead for vulnerable children, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and the recession that will follow it. However, I do not just want to focus on the gloomy side. It is important to acknowledge the various plans, measures and campaigns that are being prepared and implemented. So, that is what I would like to do in this blog.
Continue reading “Good News on Child Protection Measures”Tag: #Lumos
Model for Setting Up Alternative Care System: Introduction
On 30 March, I shared the Theory of Change model to achieve full implementation of the UN Guidelines on Alternative Care for Children with you (HERE). As I mentioned then, I currently do not have the funds to publish this model with its explanation. The fundraiser on GoFundMe to bring together these funds needed has not been terribly successful to date. And yet I do want to make the explanation that goes with the model available to people. So, I have decided to cut the explanation up into pieces and to share it (in a slightly abbreviated version) with you in blogs over the coming weeks. It will cover many topics that have come past in the blogs so far but in a more structured way. Today, the introduction to the explanation of the model:
Continue reading “Model for Setting Up Alternative Care System: Introduction”Secondary Corona Danger to ‘Orphans’
On Monday, I posted a blog explaining how the Coronavirus is much more dangerous to institutionalised children than to other children, because of their weakened immune system (you can read the blog HERE). Since then I have been struck by another threat that faces a portion of institutionalised children because of Coronavirus, and I want to share that with you.
Continue reading “Secondary Corona Danger to ‘Orphans’”Developing a Model
Over the past 50 years, the awareness of the harm caused by institutionalising children has gradually sunken in and started spreading globally. Western Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand were the first to start moving away from institutional care and towards family-based alternative care. Since they were at the forefront of this movement, they had on the one hand the challenge of discovering alternatives and figuring out how to implement them properly with little precedence to go on, while on the other hand they had the advantage of being able to do so without outside pressure to get it done quickly. In the past decade or two that pressure has been rising on all countries.
Continue reading “Developing a Model”A Push Against Volunteering in ‘Orphanages’
On 24 October, Lumos launched a big campaign against volunteering in ‘orphanages’. They held a big event where JK Rowling explained why volunteering in institutions is not a good idea, however well-intentioned it is. The campaign aims to raise awareness, to get businesses and universities to commit to stop encouraging young people to volunteer in ‘orphanages’, and to spread knowledge about more responsible ways of volunteering. This is a wonderful and necessary undertaking. You can find more information about it on their website HERE.
Continue reading “A Push Against Volunteering in ‘Orphanages’”How the Report Changed My Life
In the past two blogs I have written about what I did for the report ‘Alternative Care for Children Around the Globe’ (which you can download HERE), in this blog I want to tell you something about what the report – or rather the working on the research project that led to the report – has done for me. It is not that often that working on a project makes you change the direction of your life and work, but in this case, it really did.
Continue reading “How the Report Changed My Life”So How DOES One Help?
As the trauma of the expensive December-month is starting to fade, this might be a good time to have a look at what causes you would like to donate to this year. People who really want to help vulnerable children, may feel thrown off kilter after hearing that donating to so-called orphanages actually does a lot of harm, despite the best intentions. This is very understandable. I really hope that this will not shake their determination to make a difference and donate to causes that would be of great help.
So in this blog I want to give an overview of the kind of things that ARE beneficial to vulnerable children and that can use backing and financial support.
Continue reading “So How DOES One Help?”Increasing Momentum of Deinstitutionalisation
As the year draws to a close, it seems almost inevitable to look back and to look forward. Because my work and life are completely entangled with children in institutions and the quest to get them out of there, this features heavily in these ponderings, even on a personal level, for me.
I invite you along with me, as I look back and look ahead. I feel the past year has been a good one, for moving children towards family-based solutions.
Continue reading “Increasing Momentum of Deinstitutionalisation”Don’t Take My Word for It
Recently, Lumos has held a major event in the US. Lumos is a London-based organisation that for the past 13 years has worked very hard and gained increasing momentum to achieve global deinstitutionalisation. And now they have released a video that was taken at that event.
In the summer of 2017, I had the privilege of attending Lumos’ ‘Introduction to Deinstitutionalisation’. For four days I was able to exchange experiences and have discussions with a variety of representatives of major international organisations involved in child protection and of several government bodies from across the world. As well as increasing my knowledge and understanding of various details of how to make sure deinstitutionalisation is done responsibly.
Continue reading “Don’t Take My Word for It”Working on ‘The World List’
In the summer of 2015, I was starting to get a clearer insight into the diverse backgrounds and problems that were the main cause of the institutionalisation of children in a few specific countries. This insight led me to speculate that actually to be able to really tackle the issue of children institutions – and to get an idea of what is needed to keep them out of them – it would be useful to have information about a few specific subjects for each country, to gain an understanding of what is already in place, what are major obstacles and how alternative care and institutional care are handled.
Continue reading “Working on ‘The World List’”