Children

The impending July trial of Omar Khadr at Guantanamo Bay sets a dangerous precedent on the treatment of child soldiers.  In May UNICEF head Anthony Lake warnned about trying Khadr, saying that the use of children in conflict is a war crime and those responsible should be prosecuted, but the children involved are “victims, acting under coercion.”  Lake stated […]

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Poverty is the worst form of violence.” Poverty is the worst form and the most common form of violence which is committed daily against on quarter of the world’s children. Recently the World Bank revised poverty figures, to show a substantial increase in the number of people around the world living […]

The use of rape to terrorize women and girls, has continued throughout the Congo’s long and bloody war-torn history. Fear has become a daily emotion for women and girls, as the numbers of rape victims have continuously risen since the end of the Second Congo War, becoming a common feature of Congolese daily life. Why […]

One of children’s biggest pastimes is hunkering down in-front of the old tube and playing video games.  While of course the fist thought is to recommend that your child’s access to games and TV is limited, as an advocate for good old outdoor play. Nonetheless we all know that moderate video game usage isn’t necessarily […]

We all know the obvious culprits of the Western diet that can be harmful to our children’s health…the dreaded fast food, but could our diet actually harm children in the developing world even on a good day? According to new research from Italian scientists in the August 2-6 issue of the Proceedings of the National […]

Last month the Chinese government announced that police have used DNA technology to reunite 730 families, whose children were missing, and are now speeding up the establishment of a national DNA database to assist in reuniting missing children and their families. “The DNA database has helped reunite 730 children with their families,” Meng Qingtian, an […]

The current administration has placed some priority on issues affecting children, however in light of the recession much of this has failed to materialize in state budgets.  How do your representatives vote when it comes to issues effecting children?  Vote Kids released the 111th Congressional Scorecard this month, which shows how each member of the […]

Earlier this month, the United Nations General Assembly made a unanimous and historic vote to establish the first United Nations (UN) entity which will be exclusively dedicated to women’s empowerment and gender equality.  UN Women is the result of years of hard work and negotiations between UN member states, international NGOs, policymakers and tireless advocates around […]

In the UK a recently released study showed that 55% of children in the United Kingdom, who have been identified as persons victimized by human trafficking and subsequently rescued will eventually become missing persons. The main reason for the high percentage rate of missing child survivors is due in direct relation to a lack of […]

Yesterday, July 12, 2010 was the six-month anniversary of the earthquake which devastated the island nation of Haiti, killing more than 220,000 and which left even more Haitians displaced, homeless, or without adequate shelter. The earthquake also took a drastic toll on the country’s education system. In February I reported on the state of the […]

MDG 3: “Finding New Ways to Empower Women” The United Nations Foundation, in collaboration with Devex, would like to hear from you about your experience promoting gender equality and empowering women. World leaders are gathering again this year to map out the homestretch of this momentous campaign. The Sept. 20-22 United Nations Millennium Development Goals […]

Every Child Matters is holding a video contest in response to the 2010 midterm elections.  The environment, jobs, and consumer protection are the hot button issues at the center of the elections this year and Every Child Matters believes that children and families ought to be made a priority during this year’s campaign season. Therefore […]