Action for Children 2025: Building Safer, Greener and Peaceful Environments
The start of each new year brings renewed hope: hope that conditions for every child born that year and the years before and after, will promote their healthy development. Yet the headlines in 2024 revealed increasing risks for children and their families, particularly young children. Most recently, in California, the contribution of abnormal weather activity to the rapid spread of wildfires has led to ongoing devastation impacting children’s air quality, shelter, and access to resources. Conflict, displacement, extreme heat, air pollution, drought and a host of other environmental risks disrupt children’s physical, psychosocial and mental development, preventing them from meeting their full potential. This has to change.
The start of each new year brings renewed hope: hope that conditions for every child born that year and the years before and after, will promote their healthy development. Yet the headlines in 2024 revealed increasing risks for children and their families, particularly young children. Most recently, in California, the contribution of abnormal weather activity to the rapid spread of wildfires has led to ongoing devastation impacting children’s air quality, shelter, and access to resources. Conflict, displacement, extreme heat, air pollution, drought and a host of other environmental risks disrupt children’s physical, psychosocial and mental development, preventing them from meeting their full potential. This has to change.
As UNICEF pointed out, in 2024 children faced “never ending conflicts” with the world experiencing the highest number of conflicts since World War II. UNICEF reported that more children than ever were estimated to be either living in conflict zones or forcibly displaced due to conflict and violence. More than one in six children globally live in areas affected by conflict and the percentage of children living in conflict zones has doubled since the 1990s.
At the same time, the impact of the changing climate continued to make headlines in 2024. Heat waves shuttered schools and caused drought, negatively affecting health, nutrition and child well-being. Torrential rains caused flooding, loss of lives, livelihoods and housing. The Choking Futures: How Air Pollution Robs the Breath of Our Youngest report explores the harmful effects of air pollution and its impact on the lungs making everyone more vulnerable, particularly babies. In June 2024, WHO warned of serious health impacts of climate change for pregnant women, children and the elderly.
While conflict, destruction, and displacement feel overwhelming and are hard to face– we cannot look away. This is not the world that children deserve: yesterday, today, or tomorrow. We must bear witness to these realities while we stand up to improve the environments for all children and families. We all have the ability to take action. You can:
Document, share and disseminate stories from your own communities. Partner with local organizations (e.g. religious groups, civic groups, and higher education) and amplify voices especially those most vulnerable and limited in their ability to shield themselves from harmful exposure such as children and families from poor and marginalized backgrounds.
Call for child-sensitive climate policies to be included in climate response plans. Continue to learn and advocate for energy-efficient policies and innovations, reduction of carbon emissions, lead pollution and other environmental risks that harm children and negatively influence development outcomes.
Take steps to green early education. Promote empathy and respect for others, nurturing a new generation that cares for the earth and each other. Meaningfully engage parents and communities to foster a collective effort to protect the environment.
Work toward emergency preparation and response that addresses the needs of young children and families. Advocate for the integration of nurturing care as the right of all children and as an essential ingredient to assure public health, child protection measures, as well as child and family support services.
Find the courage to talk about peace, raise awareness of ongoing conflicts and violence (e.g. Sudan, Gaza, Haiti, Ukraine, and other countries and communities around the world). Affirm that armed conflict is not an option and call on leaders to stop the violence that is seriously affecting the well-being of children and in many cases, worsening environmental issues.
Every step counts. We cannot wait for someone else to stand up and support children and families. We are at the start of a new year and the time is now. Let's resolve to work together for a better world and a future of hope.
This blog post was originally posted on EquaNurture’s website.
Father Involvement: A Catalyst for Transforming Gender Equity and Early Childhood Development in the Next 1000 Days
Father or male caregiver involvement is good for children and families. Caring father-child relationships in the early years are essential for children’s development and wellbeing. The recent launch of the two-part Lancet series, Early Childhood Development And The Next 1000 Days reveals that about 70% of children co-reside with their fathers. Despite the significant role that fathers play in children’s lives, parenting interventions still largely focus on mothers, particularly as it relates to the next 1000 days.
Father or male caregiver involvement is good for children and families. Caring father-child relationships in the early years are essential for children’s development and wellbeing. The recent launch of the two-part Lancet series, Early Childhood Development And The Next 1000 Days reveals that about 70% of children co-reside with their fathers. Despite the significant role that fathers play in children’s lives, parenting interventions still largely focus on mothers, particularly as it relates to the next 1000 days. Equimundo’s report State of the World’s Fathers 2023: Centering Care in a World in Crisis indicates that fathers recognize their shared responsibility in caregiving duties; however, mothers still take on the majority share of caregiving responsibilities. Interventions such as the Paternar program (Program P+) aim to address additional challenges when engaging men. These include targeting social and gender norms that limit childcare roles to women and program design approaches that fail to address men’s perspectives hindering their active participation.
Another program, Juega Conmigo (Come Play With Me program by ChildFund) focuses on engaging all caregivers. Preliminary analysis of the program engagement highlights increased male engagement in the early years, once convinced of their caregiving responsibilities and the effects that their involvement has. An entry point to engaging with men on masculinity and promoting a positive masculinity approach lies in the process of father engagement, particularly within home environments and early childhood spaces. Involving fathers during the next 1000 days not only fosters their active participation in care work but also helps to reduce the double burden of labor often placed on mothers. Shared responsibilities in caregiving can create long-term shifts in couple relations and household dynamics, which pave the way for more equitable gender roles. This level of engagement provides boys with positive male role models and shapes healthier perceptions of masculinity from an early age.
Early childhood programs must incorporate tailored strategies that recognize men’s role in delivering nurturing care during the next 1000 days. By excluding fathers in single-faceted early childhood programs directed toward female caregivers, programs risk not meaningfully addressing the complexities and imbalance that exist in restrictive cultural and gender norms. Father involvement in the early years serves as a key change agent in maximizing developmental potential, overall family wellbeing, and progress toward more gender-responsive societies.
Early childhood programs and providers should consider the following steps to ensure father-inclusive interventions promote involvement:
Promote the essential role of fathers in young children’s development across communities. Since gendered division of labor is engrained in most communities, it is important to address the gender stereotypes at this level and within family structures. This includes emphasizing how patriarchy and masculinity impacts both men and women through the use of community events and initiatives. When male caregivers recognize their role in raising children, collaboration in programs and interventions becomes more effective.
Integrate a positive masculinity approach in early childhood spaces. Advocate for the intentional inclusion of fathers and other male caregivers in these settings. Promote activities that foster emotional engagement and bonding with their children through play, storytelling, and open communication.
Build capacity of program and intervention staff working with families. Using inclusive language such as “parents” or “caregivers” instead of directing all communication related to parenting workshops to mothers is crucial. Partner with male community leaders, educators, or other influential figures who could serve as role models for other men and advocate for involved fatherhood is key.
Offer a wide range of modalities to engage men. Providing flexible schedules is one step toward recognizing that fathers may have work commitments that differ from other caregivers such as mothers. Designing materials and program approaches from the start that are hybrid or diverse in nature could prove more effective as male caregivers in many contexts are expected to provide financially for their families.
The relationship between early childhood development and gender is multi-dimensional. Now is the time to design early childhood programs and interventions that promote more equitable, balanced societies. By creating supportive, inclusive, and culturally-sensitive environments, meaningful male or father engagement can be fostered in early childhood programs focusing on the next 1000 days leading to better outcomes for children, families, and gender equity.
This blog post was originally posted on EquaNurture’s website.