by Detlef Palm
One UNICEF programming concept that I always had certain conceptual issues with is that of child participation. Child participation is enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Children and young people have the right to freely express their views. Society should ensure that children’s views are considered in all matters affecting them within their families, schools, local communities, public services, government policies and judicial procedures. So far so good. This is very clear and needed and there is still much work ahead in most development programmes.
But then, dedicated child participation programmes have sprung up far and wide, often focusing on creating youth councils or debate clubs. They reach a tiny fraction for young people, which more often than not includes the children of the city Mayor. But I know even many adults who never would want to attend a town assembly nor get involved with institutions or governments processes. The likelihood of people speaking up at a council meeting tends to be inversely proportional to their disenfranchisement and the size of their gripe. Needless to say that I never took too well to the idea of inviting young people to discussing the draft five year UNICEF Country Programme Document.
Let me step back 30 years or more, when the CRC was written. Article 17 of the CRC discusses mass media, not social media. In those days, we did not have a strong concept of social networking; this was popularized only with Facebook and Co. Since then, we are looking for likes, stars, and smileys coming down our social media channels. We are social animals; we want to engage with those who think alike or those that we can have an argument with. We more consciously see ourselves as part of a network. Sometimes we scoff at digital networks that they tend to bring out the worst of people; but they also have helped millions of kids to escape their felt isolation. About to leave the comfort of their home, young people want to form and be part of a group of their own. I should think that to have one’s own physical and digital social networks is a right, even if the CRC isn’t explicit about it.
So next time, when you see that youngster typing into her smartphone at the bus stop, ask yourself or better ask her, whether her mind is set on raising her voice at the next town hall meeting. More likely the youngster will be busy feeding her network and holding her place in her group of peers. For many boys, becoming a member of a street gang is more attractive than sitting through some youth council meeting, where only the elite feels comfortable to speak.
Now here comes Greta. She managed to do what hundreds of UNICEF communication and behavioural change experts rarely managed to do: getting millions of young people interested in something, and engaging to a degree that the world begins to listen. Try to google Greta Thunberg on the UNICEF website. Not long ago, you would have drawn a complete blank. Now you get links to Fridays for Future and young climate activists. Fine. But in terms of encouraging child participation, Greta Thunberg has topped it all. High time for the adults to get to the bottom of it.
As always, your Bubble essay is thought provoking. Greta is definitely a phenomena, but I think a sign of the time. She may have been impacted by climate problems because of her health issues, but she also found out why there are such problems. She had a strong will and convinced first her parents to reduce their carbon foot prints and even give up flying, Her missing school and sitting in front of the Swedish parliament did not encourage many students to follow suit, but through social media she attracted world wide attention.
ReplyDeleteThere are many child prodigies who at a young age perform extraordinary feats. Greta is not one of them, but she has the motivation and strength to get her message across. And she is disciplined. She is quoted at having said "I only speak when I think it's necessary." And at the UN Climate Action Summit she scolded the delegates for not doing enough.
Your earlier point about children meeting and discussing grave matters is probably warranted. I have attended some of these meetings and usually the young people say what has been fed to them by adults. Nevertheless, I think we should encourage initiatives of young people and listen to them. We never know when another Greta might emerge. .
Decades ago, in the 1990's , Misrak Elias and I in the Gender and Development Section and Janet Nelson in the NGO Section in collaboration with the NGO Group on Girls believed that girls' voices were best in advocacy for the Girl Child . We strategically utilized the British Airways miles amassed by UNICEF to bring girls and their chaperones to meetings related to the Beijing Platform for Action and the Commission on the Status of Women. It was wonderful to hear these young girls speak openly in the Conference Rooms of the UN building. They spoke their minds and did not need adult tutoring but did need mentoring. Guidance emboldened them to articulate their opinions freely. Of course, the planning and logisitics were challenging but our efforts were rewarded by the active and eager participation of the girl delegates from Asia, Latin America and Africa.
ReplyDeleteIn Karnataka, for several years now, children come to the State Legislative Assembly (Bangalore, is the capital of the State) to participate in events on Children's Day (14 November). The highlight is their encounter with the Chief Minister and Ministers of Child Development, Education, Health and some legislators. It lasts for over three hours and children give very practical suggestions to resolve the problems they and their families face. Children are selected from every district of the State and there is much enthusiasm. This requires much coordination between different agencies and is ably managed by the Child Rights Trust with support from UNICEF.
Thanks Detlef for highlighting the issue of youth involvement and for their voices to be heard. Adults believe they know it all given their age and experience. But Youth, without any biases bring another perspective to the table that we must listen to and act upon. We have another Greta in the person of Amanda Gorman who so amazingly articulated another set of critical issues we must urgently confront and tackle.
ReplyDeleteThe Greta of 1992: Rick sent me this videoclip https://youtu.be/uZsDliXzyAY of Severn Suzuki, speaking at the UN Earth Summit 1992. She was 12 years old. If we had only listened.
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