Children Advocate for Rights & Transform Community

Summary

Adolescents are trained to organize and lead children. Children learn and defend human rights, gain self-esteem, and identify and advocate for change in impoverished communities.

What is the issue, problem, or challenge?

In a neighborhood where most people live on less than a dollar a day and where gangs, domestic violence, child labor, and malnutrition are prevalent, this project hopes to break the cycle of poverty, violence and despair. It empowers children to work for positive change. 15 youth leaders receive training, and work with children and parents to plan and implement the program. Scholarships are given. 70 children participate at present, but the group is constantly growing.

How will this project solve this problem?

Children learn through participation in games, supervised play, and organizing and executing events--from parties to neighborhood clean-up days. Youth leaders model behavior and values at the 3-hour weekly meetings, and meet separately for planning.

Potential Long Term Impact

Produce hopeful, confident, socially conscious leaders. Reduce child abuse, teenage pregnancy, gang membership. Increase education and learning, knowledge of rights, health issues. Instill values such as education, equality, honesty, compassion.

Project Message

"I am learning to understand children, to teach them what I am learning. To value people, speak up for my rights, loose my timidity, build my self-esteem, and to be able to say things freely"
- Angelica Montaño, Youth Leader of the program

Additional Documentation

This project has provided additional documentation in a Microsoft Word file (projdoc.doc).

Resources