UNICEF UK Blog

Getting ready for the Giant Sleepover

UNICEF News — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:18:00 GMT

It's the Giant Sleepover this weekend...

Education, the UN climate talks, and the road to 2015

Jazmin Burgess — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:14:00 GMT

Young people at the UN climate negotiations in Bonn last week highlight the importance of intergenerational equity to governments.© UKYCC

Last week, I attended the UN climate negotiations in Bonn. This was the first session of the negotiations since COP 18 in Doha in the run up to COP 19 in Warsaw this November. As a result of Doha, governments are working to implement the second period of the Kyoto Protocol (which limits the emissions of developed countries) and negotiate a new global climate treaty by 2015 - this will cover the emissions of all countries and provide technical and financial support to help developing countries cope with the impacts of climate change.

It is expected that the next two years will be essential for the progression of negotiations, to ensure that a deal can be signed off by 2015. Progress on such a deal is vital if we are to put in place action that will help children and future generations. This is especially pressing for those children living in countries particularly vulnerable to the worst impacts of climate change.

UNICEF was at the negotiations in Bonn to engage with governments on the key issues being debated, and specifically to participate in important discussions on climate change education; capacity building; and participation. A little known fact about the climate negotiations is that they look not only at reporting on, and agreeing emissions reductions targets, and finding means to scale up finance and technology, but they also include an important stream about creating the enabling conditions for governments and populations to be informed and take action on climate change.

In Doha, UNICEF worked with other UN agencies, youth groups and governments to agree a new alliance and work programme on Education, Training and Capacity building - known as Article 6. Article 6 requires all governments to take active action on educating and training their and other countries' populations to have the skills and knowledge they need to mitigate and adapt to climate change. In Bonn, two important sessions were held to discuss progress on these areas and what action still needs to be taken by governments. UNICEF was an active part of this discussion.

For UNICEF, Article 6 is a key means to ensure that children can be educated, informed, and equipped for the challenges they will face in the future - not least due to the intergenerational burden of climate change. It will be children who bear the brunt of climate change despite being least responsible for its causes.

Climate change education is an important adaptation measure, particularly in vulnerable countries, as it can teach children the skills they need to cope with a changing climate. For example how to deal with the increasing onset of natural hazards such as floods and cyclones. Climate change education can also act as a means to mitigation; teaching children and young people about resource conservation, and low carbon transitions. It can put a whole generation on a pathway to behaviour change that helps ensure concrete action on climate change.

In Bonn, discussions on Article 6 shared highlights on progress that has been made by governments on climate change education and training. Highlights from the many contributions included: EU country governments showcasing how they had mainstreamed climate education at home, and through development programmes overseas; UN agencies including UNICEF showed how they were working with governments for best possible climate education programmes; and the US presented its new national approach to climate change education for children. There was also a strong message from many about the long term benefits of educating children on climate change. They can teach skills to their peers and adults, and encourage a generation of climate related behaviour change. Moreover, education on climate change can help contribute to popular support for governments to take ambitious action on climate change.

No matter what is agreed by governments in a new climate deal in 2015, there is an important role for training, education and capacity building. Even with the most ambitious 2015 deal, we are still committed to a certain level of climate change, and populations (especially children) in vulnerable communities will need to be taught skills to cope with such changes. Likewise if the 2015 deal is to be successful, populations need to be educated on how to tackle climate change and why it is important.

The question now is, will governments, including the UK, rise to the challenge of education and climate change?

Children of Syria: We must not remain silent

Helen Pattinson — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 12:25:00 GMT

In May 2013, UNICEF UK's Helen Pattinson visited Domiz refugee camp in Iraq to find out about UNICEF's work for Syrian children living in the camp.

Read the first, second, third and fourth parts of her blog, and watch the TV appeal that was filmed during the visit.

A young child plays near waste at the Domiz refugee camp in Iraq. © UNICEF/2013/Schernbrucker

I wake up in Domiz refugee camp in Iraq. This is despite being back in my own bed at home in Hertfordshire, with my husband sleeping beside me. The area of the camp where I find myself is a place of nightmares; a sewage-ridden playground for the children of Syria seeking refuge at the camp. In my sleep I have been with the children, with my colleague Jon Sparkes, in this dreadful place. In these haunted episodes I am trying to help but am woefully ineffective. I tell Jon what he needs to do, but he cannot hear my voice. The camera crew are still; statues who are not able to take direction from me. I realise that Jon and the crew are not there, that I am not there. It's just the children. These children are with me day and night. I cannot forget them.

And so I write this blog to remember them, their generosity, their strength, their spirit, but also to release myself. Not from responsibility, but from guilt and inertia. As I write, I am fighting back tears, because I don't think the world yet understands the very real story of the children of Syria. So let me tell you.

The children of Syria are facing the most despicable crisis.

Forced from their homes by the most horrendous, continued violence, the Syrian people are fleeing for their lives. They run away, holding their children and only those most basic possessions that they can carry. Making the long and dangerous journey across the border, they seek safety in the refugee camps in surrounding countries.

And as the violence in Syria continues, so does the influx of refugees into Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq. In these often overcrowded camps, people are trying to make a new life. And they are trying. The Syrians are an entrepreneurial people who like using their hands; many of them are craftsmen. Many of the people I have spoken to are professional people wanting the very best for their family, just like me. They don't deserve what they find when they get here.

Make no mistake, the governments of surrounding countries are helping. They are trying their best to provide services for these refugees seeking safety in a foreign land. And I have see the stunning efforts of aid agencies and people working for them who demonstrate the most tremendous commitment to helping the people in the camps. UNICEF is there, providing water and sanitation, child protection and health services. There are so many brave men and women dedicating their lives to the children of Syria. They are not totally forgotten.

But UNICEF and other aid agencies are desperately underfunded. In a famine, flood, Tsunami or earthquake the world takes notice for a while, responding to the tragic events that have unfolded. But this situation has moved beyond a tragedy. It is an abomination that is unfolding before us, while most of us remain silent.

I will not remain silent. I will shout for those who have no voice and in this I ask you to join me. Because without us, what is next for the children of Syria?

Please donate to our appeal for the children of Syria

Helen Pattinson is Head of Direct Marketing at UNICEF UK

UK Child poverty figures:calm before the storm?

Dragan Nastic — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:37:00 GMT

© A child pushes a metal cart in Iraq UNICEF/Pirozzi

Last week the Government put out some updated statistics on living standards in the UK, including the figures on child poverty for 2011-12.

This was an extremely thorough, valuable report. The chapter on children is more than 60 pages long, and presents a complex picture of child poverty - the UK is a world leader at producing this sort of research.

Statistics show that in 2011-12,

-- 2.3 million children were living in relative income poverty. That's 17% of all children - no change from the year before.
-- 300,000 more children found themselves living in absolute poverty compared to 2010-11, an increase of 2%.
-- Material deprivation (whether one can afford the "essentials" to survive) has fallen by 1%.

It's a mixed picture. The relative income poverty rate remains flat - but unfortunately this is not a result of successful policy but rather due to the deterioration in living standards. To improve, we need an economic policy stimulating growth, employment, decent pay and equality.

300,000 children have fallen below the absolute poverty line, which is bad news because this represents the biggest increase for quite some time. Recent analysis by the Institute of Fiscal Studies suggests that this trend is likely to continue, with absolute child poverty projected to stand at 27.2% by 2020/21.

What is really striking for me in the statistics is that around two in three children in both relative and absolute poverty live in families where at least one adult is in work. Interestingly - and extremely worryingly - the entire increase in children living in poverty in 2011-12 came from working households. So the "welfare to work" approach is fine insofar as it goes, but it is not really effective in child poverty terms as it doesn't deal with the main drivers of poverty and inequality.

So what's my verdict? The picture for 2011-12 may be a perfectly mixed one but looking ahead, it also contains the ingredients for a perfect storm. What we need in these worrying times is for children to be prioritised and become the focus of government policy. The effort to implement the Child Poverty Act 2010 and eliminate child poverty by 2020 should be dramatically and immediately stepped up. The comprehensive spending review later this month is a good starting point.

Dragan Nastic is Domestic Policy and Research Officer at UNICEF UK.

What did we achieve last weekend?

Ali Louis — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 13:26:00 GMT

© UNICEF/NYHQ2012-0256/Asselin
Celine Pacmogda holds her 16-month-old daughter, Yasmina Nikiema, outside their home in the neighbourhood of Karpaala, in Ouagadougou, the capital

For the last six months two hundred organisations joined forces as part of the Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign to call for the end of world hunger. It has been a busy couple of months with achievements, and pauses for reflection along the way. Before we knew it, the Nutrition for Growth Summit was on our door step; a key moment for all of us concerned by, and invested in, child malnutrition.

Whilst we got ready for the Big IF in London's Hyde Park, world leaders gathered at the London office of Unilever.

We were interested to see what the UK Government could do to reduce child malnutrition around the world; an issue we know kills 3 million children a year, and holds a life-time of lost potential for those lucky enough to survive.

With your help and hard work we called on the UK Government to show leadership, and to commit new and additional financing to child nutrition.

The good news is the Government exceeded our expectation - donors committed £2.7billion ($4.1 billion) - and I am proud to say that our Government tripled spending on nutrition.

In total they pledged £370.5million to nutritional interventions such as Vitamin A, Zinc, and Iron. This also includes care for pregnant women and the promotion of breastfeeding.

Additionally, the UK Government and the other donors pledged to invest in programmes, including agriculture and social protection. These programmes should prevent 20 million children from becoming stunted and stop nearly 2 million child deaths.

The money that has been raised by donor Governments will go to 40 countries around the world who have signed up to the global platform Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN). This platform allows national Governments to write their own nutrition programmes, which take into consideration the variations of malnutrition drivers, and gives them the ultimate say in how they tackle malnutrition.

These are all great achievements – yet we must maintain pressure on world leaders to keep their promises and ensure nutrition stays on the political agenda. We must all play our part in maintaining this pressure, by writing blogs, using social media or writing to your MP.

UNICEF UK has various and great ways you can get involved and help protect the world's children.

But for the moment, let's pause and be happy with what was achieved at the Nutrition for Growth Summit.

Ali Louis is the International Policy and Research Officer for Child Nutrition

The Big IF: turning up the volume against hunger

Hayley Cull — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 17:06:00 GMT

IF campaign ambassadors Frank and Mwajuma plant spinning flowers at the Big IF installation in Hyde Park. The millions of petals represent the children who die of malnutrition every year.

As 45,000 people were preparing to gather in Hyde Park for the Big IF rally on Saturday, I was with other IF campaigners at the Nutrition for Growth summit. There with us were Frank, 16, and Mwajuma, 18, two young activists from Tanzania who are in the UK at the moment supporting the IF campaign. Frank told delegates that he, like millions of other children around the world, didn't get the nutritious food he needed as a child. He spoke movingly about a simple vision for the future: "I don't want to see my children suffer like I did." It was the first of many moments throughout the day that sent shivers down my spine.

UNICEF and IF supporter Angelique Kidjo told delegates at the summit, "I will fight for every child on this planet till my last breath". All morning, speakers reiterated the importance of children: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated that "no child should suffer injustice of malnutrition," while President of Malawi Joyce Banda told us that "nothing can be more important than ensuring our children's future," adding also that we must demand climate justice for women around the world.

Heading to Hyde Park afterwards, Angelique, Frank and Mwajuma joined an inspiring line-up of people demanding action from the G8 on hunger. Danny Boyle called it "the biggest gold medal Britain could win in 2013". David Harewood urged us to "remember the 870 million reasons why today matters: all the men, women and children who are going hungry." Jay Naidoo shared our thoughts for Nelson Mandela in hospital, adding that the best way to honour him is to celebrate his values. Lauren Laverne, Gethin Jones, Myleene Klass, Satish Kumar, Beardyman, Lucy Rose, Charlie McDonnell and many more kept the cheers coming.

This is the beginning of the end of hunger. #BigIF twitter.com/EnoughFoodIF/s…
— Enough Food IF (@EnoughFoodIF) June 8, 2013

It's not every day you get to be part of a crowd of 45,000 people rallying for something you believe in. In the face of austerity, in the face of scepticism about political change, the Big IF was proof that people in their thousands care about putting an end to the scandal of hunger. Around half of the crowd cheered when asked if they had been part of Make Poverty History eight years ago, while the cheers from the other half suggested a new generation engaging with issues around international development and justice - another spine-tingling moment.

#BigIF trended on Twitter all day long, at one point globally. Tens of thousands of tweets were sent, many to @David_Cameron directly, demanding action on hunger at the G8. We were also mentioned in over a third of global tweets about the #Nutrition4Growth summit - from all angles, the IF campaign was heard loud and clear.

The thousands in Hyde Park had come to make their voice heard, and the sound was truly incredible. But one of the most powerful sounds of all was complete quiet, when 45,000 people gave one minute's silence for the millions of children who have died of malnutrition. For the many more whose development is permanently stunted. And for the 1 in 8 people around the world who go to bed hungry every night, despite the fact that there is enough food for everyone.

It's 2013: no child should be dying because they can't get enough of the food they need. We know how to end this injustice; what we need is the political will. Together in our thousands, that's exactly what we're shouting for.

Exciting news came out of the Nutrition Summit: over $4.1 billion was pledged globally towards reducing malnutrition. This is a strong start to the G8 period and will save millions of lives, but the fight isn't over. Next week I'll be in Northern Ireland for the Big IF event in Belfast and the G8 summit in Enniskillen, where I'll stand again alongside other IF campaigners and demand that G8 leaders take strong action to stop children going hungry. We have an enormous opportunity to be the generation to end hunger, IF we make ourselves heard. Stay tuned as we turn up the volume.

Hayley Cull is Public Affairs Digital Campaigner at UNICEF UK.

Cricket stars encourage children to THINK WISE about HIV and AIDS

UNICEF News — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 15:02:00 GMT

Stacey Pham from our sports programmes team travelled to The Oval in London last week to see children from local Rights Respecting Schools put their cricket skills to the test with with players from the West Indies cricket team.

Pupils from Sir James Barrie School and Norbury Primary School with West Indies cricketers Jason Holder, Dwayne Bravo and Darren Sammy. © Jan Kruger/ICC/Getty Images

West Indies captain Dwayne Bravo and team mates Darren Sammy and Jason Holder put on a special cricket coaching clinic for children at two London schools last week. They were in the UK for the ICC Champion’s Trophy, so took some time out to visit children at the cricket ground as part of the International Cricket Council’s partnership with UNICEF and UNAIDS.

The partnership's called THINKWISE, and it teaches children and young people the importance of healthy lifestyles, and educates secondary school pupils about HIV and AIDS prevention and protection.

The 60 primary school children had the chance to practise their batting, bowling and fielding skills with the players, with the help of fantastic coaches from Cricket Without Boundaries. With a portion of the group breaking out into dance halfway through the session, it was clear that children and players were enjoying their time together at the grounds.

A high-five from Darren Sammy for pupils taking park in fielding practice. © Jan Kruger/ICC/Getty Images

Players also took part in a Q&A session where pupils asked questions, ranging from "What was your toughest moment?" to "Why did you choose cricket?" One pupil even asked West Indies Captain Dwayne Bravo to shout "Norbury!" when he scores a run in his next match.

West Indies Captain Dwayne Bravo joins in with Norbury pupils as they hone their batting techniques. © Jan Kruger/ICC/Getty Images

"It’s always important to take time out and work with children during our busy schedule for the ICC Champions Trophy," said Bravo. "We like to be able to come and share our expertise with the kids and I’m also grateful to Darren and Jason for taking the time to come down too."

Children from both schools left the grounds as huge West Indies huge fans, with signed t-shirts and an important understanding of the value of healthy living.

The coaching session features in this news report about the ICC Champions Trophy.

Stacey Pham is Sport Programmes Executive at UNICEF UK

100 children descend on Downing Street

Natasha Adams — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 15:22:00 GMT

© UNICEF UK/2013/Mikael Buck

Last week I took 100 children to Downing Street to demand enough food for everyone. The children represented more than 30,000 young people from across the UK who had supported the IF campaign by decorating plates with their messages to Prime Minister David Cameron.

I felt really proud to have been involved with the schools action, helping the IF coalition design the plate activity and encouraging UNICEF UK's Rights Respecting Schools to take part. Our target was to get 10,000 children to decorate plates with their messages to the Prime Minister – UNICEF UK received more than 10,000 plates sent just to us! It's been really inspiring reading all the messages as they've come in – we have a lot of passionate young people in this country that care about hunger and want to be heard.

Three Rights Respecting Schools came with UNICEF UK to Downing Street – The Regis School, Peel Park Primary and St Fidelis. The visit to Downing Street was just part of a day where the students learnt more about the IF campaign, made a banner for the Big IF rally and planned next steps to take their work further. The young people were delighted to meet UNICEF supporter David Walliams, and to visit Number 10. Here's what a couple of them said about the day:

“I feel privileged and proud to know that my voice and opinion has been heard by the Prime Minister. I feel I have played a small part in making the big change of ending global hunger.” Will Hodges, 12, The Regis School

“It was an honour to meet Mr Cameron, but the real reason for the visit was to help stop world hunger. As a Rights Respecting School, we want to make a difference. It is a disgrace that 2 million children die each year from malnutrition. We want a world where no child goes to bed hungry.” Ather Samin, 9, Peel Park Primary

The IF campaign has come a long way in the last few days. Around 45,000 supporters joined us for an amazing day at the Big IF rally in Hyde Park on Saturday 8 June, and at the same time $4.15 billion was pledged in aid to tackle malnutrition at the nutrition summit. I'm really pleased with the outcome so far, and that so many young people have been inspired to get involved with campaign. Now we're looking ahead to the G8 meeting itself – there are still tickets to join us at the Big IF Belfast on June 15th, to help us make some noise ahead of the summit. Fingers crossed that G8 leaders take action on tax dodging and land grabs when they meet next week…

Natasha Adams is the Activism Officer for UNICEF UK

Enough Food IF: We are ready

Astrid Baez — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 18:05:00 GMT

Malnourished two-year-old Massing Esther eating a vitamin fortified high energy and protein meal at the UNICEF supported health centre in the village of Tchontchi in northern Cameroon. © UNICEF/Cameroon/Sweeting

One of many memorable events I had at university took place on the night before finals. Promptly at midnight, after a semester's hard work and a week of coffee-fueled study groups, students stopped what they were doing, opened their windows and walked through library doors to take part in the campus-wide Big Scream. The mix of “Ahh” and random phrases could be heard all over campus, and it wasn't just about de-stressing. Looking back, I realise we were sending a message: we were ready to take on the world.

Tomorrow, 8 June, the Big IF rally is taking place at Hyde Park. This time I will be joining my UNICEF colleagues and volunteers from 200 organisations as we make a massive noise for a cause that desperately needs world leaders' attention: undernutrition.

Shortly after arriving at UNICEF I came across the story of Marie Maboule, 42, and her two-year-old twins, Massing Esther and Tito Anna from the village of Tchontchi in Cameroon. Lacking a regular income and unable to harvest the land for food, the entire family, which includes also 10 other children, is severely malnourished. Most days Marie finds it difficult to secure two meals. The twins' emaciated bodies are too weak even to walk, and although Marie knows this, she is helpless to save her children. In this northern region of Cameroon, the survival of 51,000 children depends not only on whether they receive an adequate amount of food but essential nutrients from the right kind of food.

For more than 65 years UNICEF has helped to prevent and treat malnutrition resulting in 50 million fewer undernourished children in the past two decades. I recently met UNICEF's nutrition adviser for the East and South African region, Dr. Noel Marie Zagre. During our conversation one thing became very clear: eradicating malnutrition begins first and foremost with prevention. Something as simple as providing vitamin A, iron and iodine to pregnant women can guarantee a healthy supply of essential nutrients to a baby during gestation that will carry over for up to six months after birth, explains Dr. Zagre. Following that, exclusive and immediate breastfeeding a baby in the first six months helps in their development through the early years. "The science is indisputable," says Dr. Zagre, "it's all about the first 1,000 days." Dr. Zagre, whose work can be traced back to a career in the sciences, explains that a baby's stomach can hold 200ml of fluid."If you’re filling even half of that with water, it is simply not going to provide an infant with the nutrients it needs to survive and thrive," he says.

The challenge for us in the fight against poor nutrition, says Dr. Zagre, is to link the situation now to future outcomes for all of society. "It is about recognising that by not tackling malnutrition, a child is likely to grow into a burden on society," he says. In the East African region where Dr. Zagre works, 10 million children suffer from irreversible stunting as a direct result of an unbalanced diet. When a child is stunted, he or she cannot grow, learn or become a productive member in society. Stunting affects the most vulnerable first, but it slowly eats away at the fabric of whole communities, forcing generations of families into the cycle of poverty.

We must not be the generation that had the opportunity to save more than 2 million children from death by malnutrition, and did nothing to seize it. The IF campaign launched earlier this year in January is asking for solid commitment from G8 leaders to fix our broken food system. The Nutrition for Growth event this Saturday, hosted by the UK Government, will bring together governments, business leaders, scientists and civil society to answer that call. We've had six months to prepare for this historic moment. We are more than ready to take on world hunger.

Astrid Baez is the Media Intern at UNICEF UK.

Children of Syria: An appeal for help

Helen Pattinson — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 13:28:00 GMT

In May 2013, UNICEF UK's Helen Pattinson visited Domiz refugee camp in Iraq to find out about UNICEF's work for Syrian children living in the camp. Read the first, second, third and fifth parts of her blog, and watch the TV appeal that was filmed during the visit.

UNICEF UK's Jon Sparkes and Helen Pattinson hold an eight-week-old baby at Domiz camp. © UNICEF/2013/Schermbrucker

Today I met a Syrian baby who has contributed, without even knowing it, to helping the Syrian refugees in Iraq.

We'd been walking around the sewage-filled passages of the Domiz refugee camp when some people invited us in to a small covered area where a few families had made their home. A mother gave me her baby, she wanted to share him, and for him to be on camera.

We were there to make a TV advert about the desperate plight of the children of Syria.

I was holding this tiny boy in my arms and tried to comfort him while he cried. I was trying to quieten him down so my colleague Jon Sparkes could deliver his lines to the camera. Jon stroked his little head.

There's something incredibly powerful about a newborn baby; something about their vulnerability, their dependence. As we held him we were close to tears, because of all that we've seen in this place over the last few days. Overcrowded tents, not enough water, children playing in sewage, children who don't have enough to eat, children who can't go to school, children who are frightened by all they've seen.

As the baby moved towards sleep, Jon and I tried to express to each other how abhorrent it was that this tiny new life should be born into such a cruel world. Mums and dads everywhere want to comfort and protect their children. But Syria's parents can do neither.

The little boy's mother proudly looked on as her son was being filmed. She had so little yet her baby was dressed properly, and was well looked after. She deserved respect and it was so important that we portrayed her family in this way.

Jon is in charge of UNICEF operations in the UK. He is used to monitoring organisational risk, forecasting financial projections and directing strategy. But here he was, using all of his emotional reserve to stop himself breaking down as he looked into the eyes of a little baby, who should have had everything to hope and dream for. But this little boy's future is bleak, with a desperate lack of opportunity; this little boy cannot chose what his life will be.

With the unrelenting sun beating down, Jon and I were talking about this little boy, with the camera rolling to capture Jon's thoughts. I suggested to Jon that he might turn to the camera and ask the UK public to help this little boy I was holding.

I have seen desperate situations in slums, refugee camps and remote mountain villages before. And I have cried before. I have returned to our base each evening and wept for the inadequacy of a world that allows this to happen every day to its children. But I have never before been moved like this while meeting a child. In a famine, a flood, tsunami or earthquake the world takes notice, at least for a while. But who knows that these children are here? They are the seemingly unimportant; the overlooked. The forgotten.

I watched Jon turn to the camera and say: "I'm finding this so hard. I'm asking you to help the children of Syria, because if we don't, who will?"

I hope the camera captured the power of this moment, and that other parents, or anyone who cannot bear the thought of a child not having a cot, food or shelter is moved to respond. I will never forget this moment. I will never forget how this tiny, sleeping boy and all he represents moved us in this way. I am not embarrassed or ashamed for anything other than the fact I need to do more, to convince you and everyone to do more to help these children.

The camera stops and Jon and I step back. I am still holding the sleeping baby in my arms, trying my best to protect his little face from the sun. I ask Jon a question, my words choked, he cannot answer me. We sit silently in the filth which is the ground of this little area where several families have made their home.

We realise we haven't come to make a TV ad; we haven't come to report on UNICEF’s interventions in the camp. We've come to see this little boy that I am holding and Jon is watching, to realise for ourselves that he and thousands more like him deserve the very best. Not just a home, food and safe clean water; but an education, a childhood, a future of hopes and dreams and opportunities. And we will not stop our work until the world has achieved that for every little boy and girl.

So please, before you close this page, take a moment to consider your response to this little sleeping baby boy.

Watch our appeal for the children of Syria

Helen Pattinson is Head of Direct Marketing at UNICEF UK

IF campaign: What have we all been shouting about?

Ali Louis — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 09:17:00 GMT

In Burkina Faso, Adeline Ouoba carries her baby son Bosco. She's just bought some misola, a nutritious supplementary food made from millet, soya and peanuts. "It gives him strength and makes him grow fast," she says. © UNICEF/NYHQ2012-0251/Asselin

For the last six months many of you have helped us put hunger on the political agenda. We can't thank you enough for all you've done to engage with our leaders on hunger and malnutrition.

We know that you agree with us - that hunger in 2013 is unacceptable; that we should put an end to child malnutrition.

So what have we all been working towards? Well the next two weeks are absolutely crucial for our campaign.

This Saturday world leaders, UN agencies and NGOs will meet in London and decide the fate of millions of children around the world. It is a deeply significant event which, unfortunately, has not got the media attention it deserves. Yet thousands of you have joined the Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign and shown to leaders in the UK that it is time to put an end to hunger.

Before the G8, where the eight most powerful countries in the world will meet, Prime Minister David Cameron has organised a nutrition summit. The Nutrition for Growth Summit is an opportunity for all those who work on nutrition to be together in one room - this does not happen often.

The Summit is a pledging conference, which means attendees (donor countries and foundations) are expected to pledge money to nutrition. Nutrition desperately needs more funding - if you take the value of all development aid from rich countries, total spending on nutrition is only 0.3%. That is shockingly low and it allows the nutrition crisis to continue. Unfortunately, without substantial new investment in nutrition we will not see much improvement.

So while we all gather in Hyde Park this Saturday for the Big IF event, our leaders will be pledging new money for children.

With your pressure and support we hope that the Government will decide to substantially increase funding to nutrition and ensure millions of children around the world are given the future they deserve.

Ali Louis is the International Policy and Research Officer on Child Nutrition at UNICEF UK.

IF campaign: Going back to my school days

Anne Callaghan — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 09:29:00 GMT

Thousands of children's food plate drawings fill a room at the UNICEF UK offices. © UNICEF UK/ Nikola Ivanovski

UNICEF UK's Campaigns Manager Anne is jumping for joy at seeing pupils from her old school getting involved in the IF campaign and speaking up for children's rights.

In the week of the Big IF I feel as if I've gone back to my school days.

I was ridiculously excited when I saw that one of the 28,000+ IF plates created by schools around the country was from St Kentigern's in West Lothian in Scotland - my old secondary school. The plates will be handed in to Number 10 this Thursday ahead of the Nutrition for Growth event.

Pupils all around the UK have taken the IF plate action. The plates will be handed in to Downing Street on Thursday. © UNICEF UK/ Nikola Ivanovski

It took me back to when I was at school. Back then, getting active and speaking out on behalf of the world's children wasn't as big a part of school life. I remember trying to set up an Amnesty International group and being told no; pupils weren't listened to then, which was very frustrating.

Clearly times have changed at St Kentigern's. The school's part of our Rights Respecting Schools programme, and pupils recently won an award for their work on child rights. Here's a film they helped make to raise awareness of child poverty in the UK.

See my old school reminded me that school is where I first thought about questions of justice and it helped form my outlook in life. I remember being incensed at the situation in South Africa - apartheid was in full swing in the 1980s - and we were taken to see Richard Attenborough's Cry Freedom as part of our Modern Studies course (like citizenship). I came out of that film feeling absolutely enraged at the injustice of it all and wanting to help end it.

I got active on a number of different issues because I was inspired by passionate teachers at school. Years later I got a degree in politics, then in human rights. I got the chance to campaign for change professionally for organisations like Amnesty International and the Free Tibet campaign, and now UNICEF UK. And it's always the people who campaign while at school, after work, at the weekend, who inspire me.

I saw first hand the devastating effects that poverty and hunger can have on children when I visited Malawi last year. I met an incredible boy called Elias. He's just 13, but has had to look after his younger sisters and brother since their mother died. Poverty hurts. We can't look away.

If my generation has seen the end of apartheid in South Africa, something that seemed impossible when I was a child, I hope that this generation of St Kentigern's kids can be the one that finally sees the end of child hunger in the world. I hope that Elias and his family can develop to their full potential without fear of hunger. But it'll only happen IF we ALL take action.

That's why I'm inspired by the children and young people and teachers who've taken this plate action. They care and are willing to speak out on behalf of children around the world.

Over 100 children will be going in to Number 10 this Thursday, representing the IF campaign, to speak out against the injustice of hunger for millions of the world's children.

I hope to see those of you that can come to the BIG IF event in Hyde Park this Saturday, or BIG IF Belfast the following week. Be there virtually if you can't be there in person. It's time to be counted.

Anne Callaghan is Campaigns Manager at UNICEF UK

Join me at the BIG IF London

Guest Blogger — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 09:48:00 GMT

Children's Champion Perla Bronzi © UNICEF UK

Going to the BIG IF event in London on Saturday is about more than asking for policy change. It's about showing that the lives of children around the world are important to us, says UNICEF UK Children's Champion Perla Bronzi.

The BIG IF London will take place this Saturday in Hyde Park. Thousands of people will gather to make a stand against global hunger. Ahead of the G8 meeting on 17-18 June in Ireland, IF supporters are demanding that world leaders tackle the issues at the root of the hunger crisis. Issues like land grabbing, tax dodging and lack of transparency all contribute to the hunger problem by locking the 'less powerful' in a state of permanent dependence and deprivation.

The Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign launched in January, with the aim of making 2013 the beginning of the end of world hunger. Every year more than two million children die because they cannot get enough to eat.

As a Children's Champion, I became involved so that these children's voices would not be forgotten. I lobbied my MP and dressed up as George Osborne to spell out a giant IF in Parliament Square ahead of the budget in March. These campaigning actions culminated in the successful announcement that the UK Government will spend 0.7% of national income on aid.

At the beginning of the year, the UK took over the presidency of the G8. Since then, the UK has taken a leading role by pursuing policies to alleviate poverty and ultimately hunger. But wealthy countries around the world need to act to eradicate this global problem. The London rally is our big opportunity to ensure that issues like tax avoidance are high on the political agenda.

On Saturday, IF supporters will be creating a breathtaking field of flowers made out of 2 million petals - the number of children's lives lost to hunger ever year, when they could be saved. Each spinning flower will be a token of hope for a brighter future.

The success of every campaign relies on the public support that it can galvanise. We, as campaigners, have the power to direct world leaders' attention towards what we are interested in and care about.

By coming to the BIG IF London event we are not only asking for policy changes. We are showing that, although most of the people who struggle daily with hunger are strangers to us and will remain so, their lives are important and matter to us.

I hope you can join me there.

Perla Bronzi is UNICEF UK Children's Champion.

The opportunity to end child hunger and malnutrition is now

David Bull — Fri, 31 May 2013 16:30:00 GMT

Mirriam Chongo prepares a meal for her seven-month-old son, Peter Chibeka, in their village in Zambia. © UNICEF/CHRISTINE NESBITT

In Zambia, mother Mirriam Chongo prepares a meal for her one-year-old son, Peter, outside their home in Mwamfule village. She was making nsima - cornmeal cooked into a thick paste. Unable to get the vital nutrients a child needs, Peter is chronically malnourished and his growth has been stunted as a result.

Peter is just one of many millions of children who have not had access to the right nutrients in their first 1,000 days of life. Without this crucial nutrition in their first days and years, they cannot develop mentally and physically. Their growth is stunted, meaning that they cannot reach their full potential, and they cannot grow up to bring prosperity to their families, communities and countries. The damage done to their bodies and brains is irreversible - there is no cure for stunting and Peter is just one of 165 million children facing a life of lost potential and pain.

However, we know that with the will of governments and expertise of organisations like ourselves, we have the power to change this statistic and improve the lives of millions of children. By addressing chronic malnutrition, we can break the poverty cycle and ensure effective global development.

Adequate nutrition not only benefits the health and life chances of a child, it is also the most cost-effective way to boost development and break ingrained poverty. Investing in nutrition can increase a country's GDP by at least 2-3% annually and recoup billions of dollars in lost productivity and avoidable healthcare spending.

A UNICEF report, released last month, Improving child nutrition: The achievable imperative for global progress, is clear that the staggering problem of stunting can be alleviated with scaled-up investment in simple, low-cost solutions. We know that a holistic approach which includes access to nutritious food and safe water, and promoting exclusive breastfeeding and good hygiene are key solutions for preventing and treating under-nutrition and stopping intergenerational cycles of stunting in children.

And there are proven results, also documented in our report. By scaling up nutrition and improving programmes and behaviour change in Peru for example, stunting fell by a third between 2006 and 2011; and in Ethiopia stunting in children decreased from 57% to 44% between 2000 and 2011. In fact, over the past 20 years alone, the number of undernourished children in the world has fallen by 88 million. And I'm proud that UNICEF and partners have played a crucial role in this success. But now is the time to push beyond what we've already achieved.

In just over a week, on 8 June, the UK Government will host the Nutrition for Growth Event ahead of the G8, presenting the opportunity to establish long-term change for children, their communities and nations across the world. As a global leader in child nutrition, UNICEF wants to see further commitments to bring about an even greater reduction in the number of children exposed to the damaging effects of chronic malnutrition, as an important milestone towards the elimination of child malnutrition.

Everyone has their role to play in achieving this goal; the Nutrition for Growth Summit is an opportunity to bring the public sector and private sector together to ensure that the multifaceted approach, required to end child malnutrition, is delivered. The private sector must help accelerate action to tackle the underlying causes of malnutrition including addressing low incomes and insufficient crop yields.

On Saturday 8 June, we have a real opportunity to not only change the futures of millions of children, but also those of their countries. I hope all those attending the Nutrition for Growth Event see the power they have to impact long-term global development and make the financial commitment necessary.

UNICEF UK is part of the UK's Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign, lobbying G8 leaders to end world hunger - enoughfoodif.org

*This article was also published in Huffington Post UK.

David Bull is Executive Director of UNICEF UK.

All children have hopes and dreams

UNICEF News — Thu, 30 May 2013 10:37:00 GMT

This open letter, signed by eight stars of British Paralympic sport, was published in the Telegraph on 30 June 2013.

A young girl in Jordan plays wheelchair basketball, in part of a national push to include disabled children in sport. © International Inspiration/Andrew Baker

All children have hopes and dreams, but too many children around the world struggle to realise them. This year, UNICEF’s flagship report, the State of the World’s Children, focuses on those with disabilities and finds that surviving and thriving, let alone achieving dreams, can be especially tough for them.

Last year’s Paralympic Games in London were a celebration of human strength and determination. They changed the way that people look at disability. But in too many places, children with disabilities are still last in line and discriminated against.

UNICEF’s report finds that disabled children are more vulnerable to malnutrition, with certain conditions, such as cystic fibrosis, making it much harder for them to absorb the nutrients they need. Other children with disabilities are hidden away from community feeding initiatives because of prejudice, and their health suffers as a result. Poor nutrition in early childhood is also leading to preventable disabilities, for example, between 250,000 and 500,000 children are at risk of becoming blind each year from vitamin A deficiency, which can easily be treated if doctors are given the funds.

The Government has a chance to address this at the UK’s Nutrition for Growth event next week, which comes just before the G8 summit. By pledging funds to tackle malnutrition, Britain and other world powers can give all children the best start in life and a better chance of turning dreams into reality.

Baroness Grey-Thompson

Jonnie Peacock

Ade Adepitan

Stefanie Reid

Shelly Woods

Natasha Baker

Richard Whitehead

Marc Woods

The letter appeared in the Telegraph on 30 June

No limits for children with disabilities

Guest Blogger — Thu, 30 May 2013 08:40:00 GMT

I have brittle bones, but it doesn't mean I am not capable, says 16-year-old Hollie Warren from Carlisle.

Hollie (right) with and her friend Phuong Anh in Vietnam. © UNICEF

Sometimes people are quick to judge and they decide what I can and can't do before I even speak. They don't know how to handle me or my disability. I'm in a mainstream school, however, I have to have a teaching assistant and sometimes that can be quite isolating. I need help for some things – for instance, I don't have very good vision - but I am perfectly capable of getting involved. Ignorance is the root of most of the problems I come across.

UNICEF’s new State of the World’s Children report, released today, which focuses on children with disabilities, outlines why our focus must be on what everyone can achieve, rather than what they can’t do. The research finds that by being more accepting, and including everyone, we could produce huge benefits for our whole society.

Children with disabilities are some of the most disadvantaged people in the world. They are often last in line for services like health care and education and are at greater risk of being poor than other children. They are four times more likely to be subject to violence than their peers. It's time we did something about it.

Speaking at the launch of UNICEF’s report in Vietnam will be my friend Phuong Anh. Although I live in Carlisle, England and Anh lives thousands of miles away in Hanoi, Vietnam, we are great friends. I met her on twitter. She tweeted something about having brittle bones and I tweeted her back to say I have the condition too. Social networks are incredible. We have the same type of brittle bones. I use a wheelchair part time and Anh usually uses her chair. Now we keep in touch via skype and messaging.

I know Anh sometimes experiences problems in Vietnam. She can't always move around easily at her school and that can be really frustrating as she feels different. We talk about everything. Sometimes we discuss things like dealing with pain and it's nice to have someone to talk to who has the same condition.

Generally, we both cope in a very similar way - through a positive outlook. It's not very useful to get angry and we’re just like lots of other girls our age - talking about boys and One Direction. I've learned a lot about life in Vietnam from Anh. We don't let our disability hold us back.

I follow the example of other people in the public eye - like Nick Vujicic, from Australia, who was born without limbs and is a motivational speaker. He has embraced his disability and achieved so much.

Anh is also a source of inspiration. Not long after I met her in 2011, she auditioned for Vietnam's Got Talent and she went really far in the competition. I watched her on YouTube and she let me know the backstage gossip.

She started to get recognised by people in the street and she really helped challenge attitudes towards young people with disabilities. Personally, in the future I'd like to make films as I'll be starting a BTEC in broadcast and media next year. I’ve always wanted to make a documentary on my condition and meet other people and see how they cope with it.

If I could change anything in the world, I'd make people more aware about disability in general. People shouldn't be mistreated because they are born a certain way or end up with a particular condition. If everyone were included and treated the same, we could achieve whatever we put our mind to. I am determined to set a good example and to encourage understanding. Attitudes and actions have to change.

Read the new UNICEF report on children with disabilities

This blog also appears on the Huffington Post

Children of Syria: Filming a TV appeal

Helen Pattinson — Wed, 29 May 2013 14:01:00 GMT

In May 2013, UNICEF UK's Helen Pattinson visited Domiz refugee camp in Iraq to find out about UNICEF's work for Syrian children living in the camp. Read the first, second, fourth and fifth parts of her blog, and watch the TV appeal that was filmed during the visit.

Children play alongside sewage-filled water at Domiz camp in Iraq. © UNICEF/2013/Schermbrucker

It's 6am and I'm sat on a rock next to filthy, stale sewage. The camera crew we have brought to film the situation for Syrian children are at the top of the UNICEF water tower, looking down on Domiz as the camp wakes up.

We are no strangers to filthy water, open gutters and sewage. The place where we're sitting is a conglomeration of many streams of sewage-filled water running between some of the houses. Here children live, play, survive. They do not have anywhere else to go. UNICEF workers on the ground have told me they want to build a playground. This is not top of the list of priorities given that so many children are not yet in school, but on visiting the island, you realise how heartbreaking it is that children don't have a safe place to play. UNICEF staff are acutely aware of the sewage problem. They tell me their design of an appropriate system was halted by the vast numbers arriving.

Children at the Domiz camp in Iraq take a keen interest in the camera. © UNICEF/2013/Schermbrucker

We are filming on the island, with little twins Ava and Sharim. In the near 40C heat, the stench is unbelievable. But what strikes me most is the haunting look the twins have in their eyes. Jon, our Director of Operations is making a TV advert about what these children are facing. They stand with him, still and watching the camera. I wonder what they have seen to make them so silent.

The other children watch on too. They cannot understand the words Jon is using, but they are fascinated. When we have finished we play with the children, throwing a UNICEF balloon in the air. That these children have so little to do makes me very sad.

UNICEF UK's Jon Sparkes with a young girl during the filming of TV appeal about the Syria crisis © UNICEF/2013/Schermbrucker

We know from UNICEF child protection workers than children in the camps can become at risk of domestic violence because they are restless and don’t have activities, which can cause tensions with their parents. In a session to support parents, the mothers admitted they are stressed and depressed after being forced to leave Syria in extreme conditions. They know they can be short tempered with their children. Many families are living together in tents (there is literally not enough room). Some families have waited three days just in the registration tent, because there is nowhere else for them to go. The conditions are hard, and anxiety and stress are commonplace. Thirty-five community health workers work in the camp, managing it in sections. But they are only able to see each family once a month.

I believe my colleagues when they talk about the problem of domestic violence, but to be honest it isn't something we have experienced. The parents are lovely, welcoming to our group and have a real desire to share their stories. We want to hear. More than anything, I want to understand what life is like for them.

One father tells me about how they made the journey to Iraq to stop his worst fears being realised; that his children will be kidnapped. The children miss their grandmother who is back in Syria, and it makes them very upset to even hear her voice on the phone. His wife becomes very tearful as she remembers her house, her street, her friends. The father points out that money comes and goes, but his family are more precious than gold.

We visit a UNICEF-supported hospital, where staff show me a map of all the diarrhoea cases, by tent. This is clearly being managed very well, despite the concerns staff express about the quality and quantity of the water. There are simply too many people, and the hot summer months will put an additional strain on these already stretched resources. UNICEF is supporting all new arrivals with vaccinations against diseases and there has recently been a big vaccination campaign to stem the outbreak of measles. They are about to start work in 'baby huts' where new mums can get advice and support, as well as help with breastfeeding. You cannot fail to be inspired, particularly as you see aid agencies working together to help the Syrian people.

One young girl, heavily pregnant has arrived at the hospital. She winces in pain as her contractions come. She is about to give birth to new life, in the most unimaginable conditions for a young baby. In the coming hours, she will undoubtedly be well looked after by the staff at the clinic. But after that, tomorrow and the next day, you can't help but wonder about what the future prospects are for this next generation, so far away from home.

Helen Pattinson is Head of Direct Marketing at UNICEF UK

IF campaign: Report from UNICEF nutrition conference

Ali Louis — Fri, 24 May 2013 09:53:00 GMT

Raya Achirou plays with her 8-month-old daughter Nana at the UNICEF-supported Bilmari Health Centre in Niger. Nana is suffering from malnutrition and being treated at the centre with ready-to-use therapeutic food. © UNICEF/NYHQ2012-0178/Asselin

Last week I and another colleague from UNICEF UK travelled to Paris for the UNICEF International Conference on Undernutrition.

Over 400 people attended the conference; half were representatives from Sub-Saharan Africa. There were also colleagues from other charities, journalists, economists and other UNICEF national committees.

The conference had a specific focus on Sub-Saharan Africa and resilience for communities. It was an excellent opportunity to learn from colleagues around the world about how they were tackling malnutrition in children, concentrating on the first 1,000 days of life.

The conference was a prelude to an extremely important event held in London this June. Prior to the G8 in Northern Ireland, the Prime Minister will host a Nutrition for Growth Summit on 8 June. Countries from around the world, including the G8 countries, will be invited. This will be a pledging conference; we hope that governments, foundations and some large charities will commit to financing nutrition programmes around the world.

The conference in Paris aimed to rally support and outline the case for investing in child nutrition.

The case is clear: over 2 million children die from malnutrition. Not only do we lose precious lives but countries lose 2-3% of their GDP due to malnutrition. Furthermore, those children who survive are permanently affected by the lack of good nutrition in their first 1,000 days. Investing in nutrition will provide a generation of children the opportunity to flourish, to avoid illness, learn and earn more.

In Paris I saw leadership, passion and determination from Sub-Saharan African countries to fight malnutrition. It was inspiring to see so many people from around the world come together to say enough is enough.

We learned about how improved hygiene could have a drastic impact on malnutrition rates, why breastfeeding will be at the forefront of fighting malnutrition, and discussed what involvement the private sector could have.

It was clear we all understood the severity of the problem, we knew what was causing it, and we knew what needed to be done to end it. Yet it was also evident that we have to work together and commit to ending child malnutrition.

I hope that this June, governments around the world will act to stop children needlessly dying from malnutrition.

Join us on 8 June for the Big IF Event in Hyde Park.

Ali Louis is the International Policy and Research Officer on Child Nutrition at UNICEF UK.

IF Campaign: Hidden Hunger

Carl Hickson — Thu, 23 May 2013 09:54:00 GMT

Whilst we can never fully comprehend the plight of hunger and the long-term impact of malnutrition, we can try to understand, empathise and act upon what we see. As a UNICEF UK On Campus Regional Coordinator, I wanted to share with you why I think we need to act on hunger and malnutrition, and how you can make a difference by coming to the Big IF event in London.

The hunger we feel at the end of a long day helps us to appreciate how hard it must be for those who face, on a daily basis, the distress of not having enough to eat. Live Below the Line participants have gone a step closer to putting themselves in the shoes of the poor.

Even harder to grasp are the often hidden effects of malnutrition, a topic of UNICEF UK's recent report, The right ingredients: the need to invest in child nutrition. The report reminds us that whilst hunger is about insufficient quantity of food, malnutrition is about insufficient quality of food. The impact is huge - children's growth and development are stunted; they become weak and more vulnerable to other illnesses. Malnutrition causes "one in three of all child deaths. In 2011 alone, 2.3 million children died because they did not get the nourishment they needed."

Yet malnourishment is much less visible. Malnourished children do not make the news and many people are unaware of the scale of the issue. When hunger and malnutrition go hand in hand, it is often only the hunger we think of. The IF Campaign has worked to increase awareness about these issues and work with the government to help protect vulnerable people around the world, especially children.

Recently, I have been involved in promoting the IF Campaign across Scottish universities. The campaign's main focus is hunger, however it recognises that malnutrition is a worldwide scandal. This is something I admire about the campaign; it recognises more than just the most visible issues.

After talking up the campaign to all of our society presidents in Scotland, the effort they have given back has been incredible. Everyone has been busy writing to the Chancellor and to their local MPs about the campaign, with members of the Dundee and Aberdeen societies meeting their MPs face-to-face. Students across Scotland threw themselves into Live Below the Line, and the Dundee society, alongside other members of the IF coalition, organised a poverty banquet that was attended by their local councillor and featured in the local press.

On 8 June the UK government will host a Nutrition for Growth Summit. We are asking David Cameron to illustrate leadership and pledge additional funding to child nutrition, which we hope could save 2 million lives a year.

Please support the calls of the IF campaign by joining us at the Big IF London on 8 June. By showing the government that citizens across the UK care about hunger and malnutrition, we hope we can convince them to take the action that is needed to ensure there us enough food for everyone.

Carl Hickson is UNICEF UK On Campus Regional Coordinator for Scotland

IF: Your school can help end child hunger

Gitika Bhardwaj — Mon, 20 May 2013 12:46:00 GMT

A student's message to the UK Prime Minister as part of the Enough Food for Everyone IF plate activity. © UNICEF UK/2013/Gitika Bhardwaj

The world produces enough food for every child, yet not every child has enough food to live. So we're calling on all children and young people across the country to join us in wearing our masks and fastening our capes for the Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign. With your support we can be the generation to end child hunger.

Schools across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are getting involved by taking part in our IF plate activity. This includes our Rights Respecting Schools – who champion children’s rights in the UK and advocate the need for children’s rights to be realised everywhere – and our Schools Campaign Network for whom we provide regular activities that can be used to campaign with us.

We want a world where every child has enough food to eat, and you can be the superheroes that can persuade UK Prime Minister David Cameron to make this come true.

You can find lots of information about how to join on our website, where there is also a fantastic selection of presentations that can be used in assemblies, and a range of films for you to use − including a film featuring One Direction!

More than two million children die every year because they do not have enough food to eat. Another staggering 180 million children under the age of five suffer from stunted physical and mental growth as a result of malnutrition. Politicians around the world care about what young people think – and your school can make all the difference in our mission to be the generation to end global hunger.

Just some of the schools and youth groups that have taken part with the IF plate activity so far include: Woolceva Primary School, Peel Park Primary School, the 1st Bishopston Cubs, the Wessex United Reform Church, Ferndown Middle School, Tanbridge House School, Ernesford Grange School, Admiral Lord Nelson School, and Mill Hill County High School.

UNICEF UK has received hundreds of plates with children's messages to David Cameron, and I have been delighted to read each and every one of the emotive messages that have come through to us.

But we still need more. The more plates we have, the more we can persuade the UK Prime Minister, and through him the leaders of G8 nations, to take action on global hunger.

Here are the moving words of one student from Beechcroft St Paul's Ceva School, who wrote this message to the UK Prime Minister:

“To David Cameron, We think there could be enough food for everyone if all of the world pulled together and made the world a happier place.”

We will be inviting a selection of the most engaged schools to take part in a special hand-in event to Downing Street in June, where we will be delivering all of our students’ messages straight to the UK Prime Minister.

If you’re a student, teacher, or parent who thinks your child might like to get involved, please take a look at our IF plate activity and help us ensure David Cameron hears what children and young people think ahead of the G8. Together, we can defeat one of the world’s greatest super-villains – child hunger – once and for all, and ensure that there is enough food for everyone.

Children and young people – it’s time to assemble!

Gitika Bhardwaj is the Campaigns and Activism Intern at UNICEF UK.

Why I'm part of the conversation on climate change

Cressie Mawdesley-Thomas — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:18:00 GMT

On 11 September, children stand on a small island formed by flood waters, in Mirpurkhas District, Sindh Province. They have been displaced by flooding.

I have just arrived in Geneva to attend the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, where I am going to be working with the Children in a Changing Climate coalition: Plan International, Save the Children, UNICEF and World Vision International.

Today and tomorrow there will be preparatory workshops in advance of the Wednesday feature event called "The Resilient Future We Want: Children in DRR", which aims to demonstrate how children need to be listened to: so that nations can help their children help themselves, each other and their communities when disaster strikes.

The focus of the event will be listening to children and responding to their specific vulnerabilities; ensuring this translates into action and is a focus up to and beyond 2015, when the Hyogo Framework expires.

This is important for everyone because children and youths are the most vulnerable in natural disasters, thus it is only right that they are given a platform on which they can share their experiences and articulate their suggestions for making their communities more resilient to disasters.

Ayumi, 16 year old girl from Japan, explains why she is attending: "I came here to change the current situation in order to further enhance health protection for children in Fukushima".

Over the next few days I am going to be helping facilitate discussions and workshops with young people from over 3 continents who have experience of disasters in their country: my role is to ensure that these amazing young people, who can teach leaders so much, have the confidence and opportunity to explain what they, as children, need. It is essential that decision makers recognise, understand and accommodate for the specific and acute vulnerabilities children face when disaster strikes and that infrastructure and education is implemented to ensure that children are protected.

In 2011 the Children's Charter for DRR was launched, setting out five priorities identified by 600 children on disaster risk reduction, and there were roundtable discussions highlighted what needed to be done to reduce disaster risk for children.

This 2013 follow-up session will focus on how risks for children can be reduced in practice and the role children can play. It will offer concrete recommendations for the post-2015 DRR policy framework, as the Hyogo Framework expires in 2015.

I am part of this because it is only right that children and young people are recognised as key stakeholders within discussions on DRR: young people may be the most vulnerable but are innovative and have a great capacity to deal with change, if equipped with adequate information and resources. Thus children and young people must be empowered on an international, national and community level so that they can understand disasters, prepare for them and develop physical and psychological coping mechanisms. It is also important to not see DRR as an isolated issue but to recognise the intrinsic relationship between disaster reduction, sustainable development, poverty eradication, intergenerational justice and equality.

Over the course of the Global Platform, I want to see recognition of the fact the preparing for disasters and adapting communities and their infrastructures today will save lives and money tomorrow. Recognition of the risks faced by children and the role they can play. This recognition needs also to translate into action by political will, international co-operation and a pooling of expertise. At the Global Platform in 2013, it is time to build the resilient future we want.

Cressie Mawdesley-Thomas is a former young climate ambassador for UNICEF UK

Children of Syria: Day 2 at Domiz camp in Iraq

Helen Pattinson — Wed, 15 May 2013 15:22:00 GMT

In May 2013, UNICEF UK's Helen Pattinson visited Domiz refugee camp in Iraq to find out about UNICEF's work for Syrian children living in the camp. Read Helen's first, third, fourth and fifth blog from Domiz,and watch the TV appeal that was filmed during the visit.

Today I have had one of my proudest days of working for UNICEF.

It started this morning, as I watched 80 children playing games in a child-friendly space. UNICEF has provided the facilities for children to be able to relax and enjoy themselves, in a safe environment. There are over 1,000 children registered and 250 come here each day. It's much easier to make the transition to school if children come to a child-friendly space first. It's a joyful place and the children are screaming with delight as we have a go in the game of skittles.

I take my go and sit back down, and my eyes are drawn to a little girl who is not cheering or shouting. She comes to sit with me and asks for a cuddle. The staff tell me her name is Helen. That's my name. She has a faraway look in her eyes and is only interacting with her older sister and UNICEF staff. It struck me that while it's important that children have a place to enjoy themselves, many of these children have seen the unthinkable. It worries me that little Helen has seen things that no child should have seen. And that she seems unable to relax.

It's little wonder. I hear about a three-year-old boy whose father carried him as the family ran to escape the bombings in the middle of the night. The little boy was injured and has experienced profound distress as a result. UNICEF's child protection team are working with him and his family to support him. But it's a cruel world, and Syria's children know it. When you start to hear what they've lived through, and what they've lost, you begin to understand just how important it is that they have somewhere to come and play.

What's heartbreaking today is that there isn't enough space to help every child. The overcrowded Domiz camp has over 13,000 children. Of them, around 3,500 children are in school and 1,000 are registered at the child-friendly space. But it isn't enough. Every child should be able to experience this normality. It's not just about education, it's about something to do; life here is boring. Children are given high-energy biscuits, fruit and a drink here. And there are hand washing facilities and clean drinking water. But most of all it's about hope.

I see these Syrian people wanting to create the best possible lives in this desperate situation. One father I meet whose children cannot go to school (they have recently arrived and there are no spaces available) tells me: "My children are clever, they did well at school in Syria. In my family there are doctors and lawyers - why should my children miss out just because there is a war in our country?"

Why indeed. It's something the UNICEF staff on the ground are acutely aware of. They are urgently trying to get more land to build more schools. At the moment children go to school in shifts as there isn't enough space for those who have a school place to go all day. UNICEF is particularly keen to ensure 15-18 year olds have a senior school, so that there is something to do. It's not a good prospect for anyone if these yong people are bored and disillusioned.

The dedication of the staff is incredible. They tell me how important it is that they are setting up a special summer school, so children have somewhere to go. And they are critically aware that there is no provision for the under fives. Sadly their dedication isn't matched by funding to help these children. If education is about hope for a better life, of making things better for the next generation, then we need some education too. Because without UNICEF, without you and me, what hope is there for Syria's children?

Children of Syria: Storify in Lebanon

UNICEF News — Mon, 13 May 2013 11:11:00 GMT

Children of Syria: At the Domiz camp in Iraq

Helen Pattinson — Fri, 10 May 2013 14:51:00 GMT

In May 2013, UNICEF UK's Helen Pattinson visited Domiz refugee camp in Iraq to find out about UNICEF's work for Syrian children living in the camp. Read Helen's second, third, fourth and fifth blog from Iraq.

It's been four months since I got back from Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan. It's there where I first had my heart broken by the desperate plight of Syria's children.

Forced from their homes by violence, children have fled over Syria's borders in their hundreds of thousands to seek safety. Not a day has gone by when I haven't thought of them and what they've lost. It's quite straightforwardly wrong that anyone, let alone a child, should lose so much.

This week I returned to the region, to the Domiz camp in Iraq. It's a sobering thought that Syria's children are seeking safety in a country like Iraq, with its own history of violence.

Domiz is situated near the city of Dohuk, about forty miles from the Syrian border. Right now around 40,000 Syrians are living there, but the camp was only built for around half that number. It's an understatement to say that overcrowding is a problem here. Many more people arrive each day, every one of them desperate to escape the horrific crisis in Syria.

If Za'atari camp was characterised by the bleak, bitterly cold weather in January, Domiz in May couldn't be more different. It's hot and dusty here, and the earth is parched and cracked. The sun beats down relentlessly, and you feel thirsty every second you're standing outside.

Still, people have to withstand this heat. The camp is crammed with tents and shelters. Many families are forced to share small tents with other families, and they can't stay inside all day. There simply isn't enough room.

A UNICEF expert on water and sanitation tells me there should be one toilet for every 20 people here. In fact we are not even close to that target. The latrine I saw here was filthy with mess and stench, but it's the only option these people have. I am saddened to my core that a child who has perhaps lost their home, their school - and sometimes even their family and friends - has to cope with something like this to relieve themselves.

There isn't a proper drainage system either, so people have had to dig out new trenches for dirty water and sewage. Children play there, because there isn't anywhere else for them to go.

The challenges at Domiz are great, but they're more than matched by the absolute determination of the UNICEF staff on the ground here. Our staff are working with partners and other agencies to ensure there is an adequate supply of clean water, more toilets, and more school buildings so children can find a proper place to learn and play.

The #childrenofsyria trying to build a brighter future in a UNICEF supported school in Domiz camp, Iraq twitter.com/helenjpattinso…
— Helen Pattinson (@helenjpattinson) May 8, 2013

Right now UNICEF is ensuring that foundations are being dug for a new set of water towers. I can see three towers right now, standing high above the camp with the UNICEF logo in bright cyan.

I'm proud of everything my colleagues have achieved so far for Syria's children. These children deserve so much more than this. It's a challenge for all of us.

Why I care about climate change

Guest Blogger — Thu, 09 May 2013 13:23:00 GMT

A boy steps on blocks to avoid floodwater as he leaves his school in Benin. Millions of children are facing the impacts of climate change such as droughts and floods. Be part of changing this by sending an email to the Climate Change Minister now. © UNICEF/NYHQ/OLIVIER ASSELIN

Our 14-year-old Children's Champion Eshitha tell us why she cares about climate change and why we must take action. Over to Eshitha..

Climate change should not just be something for only scientists and world leaders to worry about. It is something that should concern us all and also one that all of us should be willing to tackle. As a fourteen-year old I worry about climate change and how it will affect my future and the future of other young people.

My ambition is to become a marine biologist. I want to study beautiful coral reefs, whales and the animals which live in the depths of this blue planet. But climate change will mean that I won’t be able to study the oceans in the way that people study them now.

By the time I have grown up, the world will definitely have changed. Already, greenhouse gases are causing the polar ice-caps to melt and push some species to the verge of extinction. Coral reefs are being hit hard, sea levels are rising and the earth’s weather is experiencing ever more extreme fluctuations. Increasing levels of carbon dioxide and methane are being produced as a result of the deforestation of rainforests, the burning of fossil fuels and the decomposition of waste in landfill sites. Our atmosphere is heating up and sea levels are rising. Unless we take action, I fear that by the time I reach thirty, the problems we are faced with now will seem minute in comparison to those we will be facing.

Whilst climate change is impacting most forcefully on children and families in developing countries contributing to poverty and hunger, the effects of climate change are affecting us all. As a human race, I believe we are more willing to tackle problems which we think are affecting us directly in the short-term, but not so willing to tackle those problems which affect us in the long-term. This needs to change now.

Governments around the world should see tackling climate change as one of their top priorities and the British Government needs to take the impact of climate change on the environment much more seriously. When it comes to climate change, I’m not proud of the human race. I cannot be proud of our selfishness, our stubbornness and our laziness to just sit idle and wait for a solution which may never come. If I have children, I desperately want them to see the world in all its beauty. That’s why we have to act now to try and live harmoniously with nature as generations before us did. We must not try to bend nature into any shape we want. For the sake of our future and the future of our planet, it is imperative that we help our Earth to stand on her feet again.

You can help by asking the Climate Change Minister to keep the UK Government's promise on climate change. Take action now.