On January 24th, at the office of the Know-How Center for Alternative Care for Children, NBU, the first meeting of the Childhood 2025 Coalition members for the new year took place.
The meeting started with the introduction of the new member – Hope for the Little Ones Foundation. Dinilia Krasteva, Executive Director of the foundation, spoke about the work of their mobile teams and the efforts her colleagues are making to support families in disadvantaged situations so they can continue to care for their children.
During the meeting, participants planned their work on developing ethical standards for joint advocacy initiatives with parents who became involved with the child protection system. The aim is to guarantee the rights of the most vulnerable children and their families together with them. Sharing of stories and opinions of the so called 'experts by experience' has the potential to tap into people's emotions, which in turn has the power to achieve a greater impact for social change.
The members also discussed the organization of a series of public events, where the latest research "Causes of separation of children and families in Bulgaria" will be presented. It is part of the long-term efforts of the Childhood 2025 Coalition to bring the issue of separation between children and their families as a serious risk to their development into the focus of attention and as a priority in national and local social, educational and mental health policies. The study is a product of 5 organizations of the Coalition, which provide social services (supportive, residential and foster care) and directly support children and families in vulnerable situations in 19 out of 28 regions in the country, and a sixth – a research and communication hub at New Bulgarian University. These are:
During discussions with a wide range of professionals throughout the country, the "For Our Children" Foundation also became part of the research team.
The first event will be held together with journalists in early March at New Bulgarian University.
