Working Group on

YOUTH PARTICIPATION

Purpose:

Young people worldwide are leading cultural change and peaceful global activism and challenging power structures at every level of society. The engagement of youth is particularly important in the prevention of child abuse and neglect, and ISPCAN is committed to including young people in the work we do.

Our objective in developing this new Youth Participation Working Group is to provide a space for youth/ young people (18 years and older) and others – practitioners and professionals working in the field – to connect and contribute ideas and resources on the topic of youth participation. We encourage ISPCAN members as well as nonmembers to subscribe to this page and share ideas or resources with our team. We welcome participants from all disciplines and with varied experiences.

ISPCAN also offer young people the opportunity to gather at every regional and international congress, where we we work with our local partner to organize a Youth Forum Day. This event is for young adults ages 18-25 to discuss and address child maltreatment and child protection topics of interest in the region. Information about Youth Forums for specific Congresses is available under “Congresses” on the ISPCAN home page.

Convener: Sue Bennett, ISPCAN Councilor; please contact [email protected]

KEY REPORTS/RESEARCH

Links

Major Data Sources available for this Topic

Videos

Facts and Stats

Globally in 2014, 1 billion children aged 2–17 years experienced physical, sexual, emotional or multiple types of violence. A quarter of all adults report having been physically abused as children. One in five women and one in 13 men report having been sexually abused as a child.

Child abuse—40 million children below the age of 15 suffer from abuse and neglect. (United Nations Children’s Fund, 2008)

Gang violence—100 percent of cities with populations greater than or equal to 250,000 reported gang activity. (US Department of Justice)

Child labor—246 million children, one in every six children aged 5 to 17, are involved in child labor. (International Labour Organization, 2002)

Child soldiers—UNICEF estimates that more than 300,000 children under 18 are currently being exploited in over thirty armed conflicts worldwide. While the majority of child soldiers are between the ages of 15 and 18, some are as young as 7 or 8 years of age. (US Department of State, 2005)

Human trafficking—It is estimated that there are 27 million people in the world today who are enslaved. Every year 600,000 to 800,000 persons are trafficked across international borders. (US Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report, 2006)

ISPCAN YOUTH FORUMS

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Please join the conversations below to connect with your fellow colleagues within the working group to share resources, collaborate and discuss issues.   Create a community of learning together

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