Dear friends,
Warm greetings from Arigatou International - Geneva and welcome to this new issue of the Ethics Education Newsletter.
This year we celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the most widely ratified international human rights treaty, that has shifted the way children around the world are seen, treated and cared for. The CRC has helped improved the lives of millions of children around the world, enhancing their life opportunities, empowering them and drawing attention on their physical, socio-emotional, cognitive and spiritual needs.
We join hundreds of organizations and child rights advocates around the world to celebrate, take stock and recommit to strengthen the implementation of the CRC around the world, to create more meaningful and participatory spaces for children and youth; to listen to children’s views; challenge violence that is condoned in the name of religion and culture, and to work hand in hand with children and other partners.
In this newsletter, we share with you news from the several roundtable discussions held around the world on mobilizing faith communities, child practitioners and educationalists to end violence in early childhood and nurture children’s spirituality; as well as the exciting news regarding the pilot workshops with children from ages six to 11 to adapt the Learning to Live Together Programme.
During this period, Arigatou International also participated in several meetings to raise awareness about the importance of ethics education to foster interfaith learning and support the prevention of extremism and foster resilience in children. I also invite you to read our Opinion piece by Rev. Fred Nyabera, Director End Child Poverty, on the importance of addressing early childhood to contribute to end poverty that affects children, particularly the most marginalized.
I look forward to continuing collaborating with many partners around the world.
In peace,
Maria Lucia Uribe
Director
Arigatou International - Geneva
Opinion
Investing in Early Years is Foundational to Ending Child Poverty
 By Rev. Fred Nyabera, Director, Arigatou International - End Child Poverty
Investments in ECD are not only fiscally smart, given the multiplier effect of ECD across several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but they are also scientifically credible and morally correct. We have learned that a developing brain needs multiple inputs – health, nurturing care, protection, and enrichment. By incorporating these multiple inputs into our early childhood development efforts, we can foster the developmental potential of young children.
Stories from The Filed
Promoting Learning to Live Together in Latin America and The Caribbean – A Story of Service and Conviction
Ms. Mercedes Román has been a key driving force in the implementation and dissemination of the Learning to Live Together Programme in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) since before it’s conception. In this interview, she shares about her journey working with children and women in vulnerable situations, and how her family and religious background instilled in her a strong sense of justice, generosity and caring for the most needed members of society.
Read more.
Adaptation of the LTLT
Adaptation of the Learning Live Together Programme to Middle Childhood: Pilots in Bucharest and San Salvador
A series of pilot workshops with young children are being held in different parts of the world, as part of the two-year process to adapt the Learning to Live Together Programme to middle childhood years. After reaching 70 children in Kenya and Portugal, two new workshops were held in Romania and El Salvador.
Read more.
30 Years of the CRC
Consultative Meeting in Lausanne, for the Multi-Religious Study on the Contributions of Religious Communities to the Convention on the Rights of the Child
On 20 November, the international community will mark the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the most comprehensive treaty on the rights of children which has been ratified by virtually all UN Members States.
For this occasion, Arigatou International, in close collaboration with the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Violence against Children (SRSG) has initiated a Study from a multi-religious perspective with experts on child rights, religious leaders and scholars that includes a review of the CRC since its adoption. The Study is also being developed in collaboration with UNICEF and other key partners.
Read more.
International Consortium
Five Roundtable Discussions to INSPIRE Local Action to End Violence in Early Childhood
A set of five roundtable discussions were organized in Brazil, India, Kenya, Lebanon, and Sri Lanka, gathering more than 600 religious leaders, representatives from governments as well as faith-based and civil society organizations, experts on children’s issues, academia, pediatricians, and educators to discuss the importance of early childhood, the impact of violence on children’s development, how to nurture values and spirituality in the family, schools, religious communities and society at large, and reflect on ways to challenge social and cultural norms that condone violence in early childhood.
These meetings were organized by the International Consortium on Nurturing Values and Spirituality in Early Childhood for the Prevention of Violence against Children, with the aim of mobilizing local religious communities, and raising awareness about INSPIRE – Seven Strategies to End Violence Against Children.
Please follow the links to learn more about the roundtable discussions held in Brazil, India, Kenya, Lebanon, and Sri Lanka.
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Did you Know?
Four interns aged 16 to 18 have been engaged with Arigatou International since April to integrate the newly created GNRC Youth Committee. After a thorough selection process, they were selected among 28 candidates.
The young interns are based in Cameroon, Ecuador, India, and Pakistan, and they were chosen due to their outstanding commitment with their local GNRC groups towards promoting the rights of the child, finding peaceful solutions to conflicts in their communities, and overall contributing to building a better world together.
As members of the GNRC Youth Committee, they are involved in carrying out a special campaign to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Read more
Upcoming Events
8 to 13 July
Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
Adaptation of the Learning to Live Together Programme to Middle Childhood
5 to 9 August
Coimbatore - India
Adaptation of the Learning to Live Together Programme to Middle Childhood
12 to 15 August
Mexico City, Mexico
Learning to Live Together - Facilitator Training Workshop
29 to 30 August
Quito, Ecuador
Adaptation of the Learning to Live Together Programme to Middle Childhood
7 to 11 October
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Learning to Live Together - Facilitator Training Workshop
19 to 22 October
Bangkok, Thailand
Second Annual Meeting of Expert Group for the Adaptation of the Learning to Live Together Programme to Middle Childhood
1 to 3 November
Lima, Peru
Learning to Live Together - Facilitator Training Workshop
Staff
We Welcome Our New Staff Member
Juan Carlos Hugues
Research Intern
Read full bio.
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