EFC to launch Thematic Network focusing on children
On 22 May, during the 2019 EFC Annual General Assembly and Conference in Paris, an exploratory meeting on the formation of a children’s network was organised with 23 EFC members.
A previous Thematic Network related to children had been active within the EFC for several years, and this meeting aimed to explore if there was interest in establishing a new children’s network, calling upon the experiences and lessons of the previous group, with a renewed vision and energy. The participants’ reactions to the meeting indicated that there is a great interest in following through with this, and building a new network.
The 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child is a unique opportunity to put children’s rights onto the international agenda, and take a collective step towards the actual realisation of those rights. This new network will work to support this, being a responsive network that adapts to the needs of its members, in terms of peer-learning, connecting, and networking. Even though many areas of work and funding are highly specialised, there are great overlaps between specialisations, and initiatives that can provide space for the network to thrive, and provide opportunities to share lessons, ideas and approaches, along with finding common ground for benchmarking and collaborating.
The first network event will take place in Brussels in autumn 2019, and will be a co-creation effort, ensuring members’ involvement in the design of the event.
For further information please contact Sevda Kilicalp, EFC Thematic Networks Coordinator.