Save the Children
| Save the Children | |
|---|---|
|
|
| legal form |
Corporation (Save the Children International) |
| founding | 1919 |
| founder | Eglantyne Jebb |
| Seat | Save the Children International: London Save the Children Germany: Berlin Save the Children Switzerland: Zurich |
| main emphasis | Children's rights |
| Action space | worldwide |
| Managing directors | Inger Ashing |
| Website |
savethechildren.net savethechildren.de savethechildren.ch |
Save the Children is an international non-governmental organization that campaigns for the rights and protection of children worldwide. It was founded in 1919 by the teacher and social reformer Eglantyne Jebb in Great Britain and is religiously and politically independent. Today Save the Children International consists of 28 country organizations - including Save the Children Germany eV and Save the Children Switzerland - and is active in around 120 countries.
The declared aim of the organization is to strengthen the rights of children worldwide and to improve their lives. Her work focuses on the areas of health and survival, school and education as well as protection against violence and exploitation. In addition, Save the Children provides humanitarian aid in emergencies and disasters, for example in crises such as the civil war in Syria or after natural disasters such as the severe earthquake in Nepal in 2015 .
history
In 1919 the English teacher and nurse Eglantyne Jebb and her sister Dorothy Buxton founded the “Save the Children Fund” in London. On May 19, 1919, they announced the founding of the organization at an event at the Royal Albert Hall . The two sisters initially collected donations primarily to help children in Germany and Austria who suffered from famine as a result of the First World War . During the war between Greece and Turkey 1919–1922 and the famine in Russia in 1921 , Eglantyne Jebb collected donations in kind and money for needy children.
On January 6, 1920 "The Save the Children Fund International Union" was founded in Geneva, which was also headed by Eglantyne Jebb. The aim was to coordinate the aid from Save the Children from a neutral country like Switzerland. At the same time, branches of the Save the Children movement emerged in various countries, which operated independently of the British founding organization but belonged to the Save the Children Union. Including Rädda Barnen in Sweden. In 1972 the Save the Children organizations merged to form the "International Save the Children Alliance", which in 2010 was renamed "Save the Children International".
Save the Children has now been working for children for 100 years and has provided emergency aid in various crises over the decades. For example, in the 1930s the organization helped children and their families fleeing the Spanish Civil War . In the 1940s, the focus was on helping children after the Second World War . In the 1950s and 1960s the organization supplied u. a. Children who suffered from the consequences of the Korean and Vietnam wars. The organization was also active for children during the great famine in Ethiopia in 1984/85 . And in the 1990s the organization started u. a. a program to reunite families separated during the genocide in Rwanda .
Importance for children's rights
Save the Children founder Eglantyne Jebb was a pioneer in children 's rights worldwide. In 1923 she first formulated the rights of children in five principles, the Children's Charter. “I am convinced that we should lay claim to certain rights of children and work for the universal recognition of these rights,” Jebb wrote to the League of Nations in Geneva. The principles she wrote were adopted by the League of Nations in 1924 as the “Geneva Declaration”. They also served as the basis for the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child , which was passed by the General Assembly in 1989 and ratified two years later by the government of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Work worldwide
Save the Children claims to be the largest independent children's rights organization in the world. The organization is currently active in around 120 countries (as of 2018). Her work focuses on education, health and survival, child protection and the fight against child poverty. The organization relies on long-term projects in the field of development aid as well as deployments in crisis situations in which rapid humanitarian aid is required. The organization provided emergency aid after the devastating 2004 Asian Tsunami , the earthquake in Haiti in 2010 , during the Ebola epidemic in 2014 and the famines in Africa in 2011 and 2017. The organization is also in conflict zones such as Syria , Yemen and Iraq in use and participated in the sea rescue of refugees in the Mediterranean Sea in 2016 and 2017 in the course of the refugee crisis with the ship VOS Hestia . In addition, Save the Children is active as a non-governmental organization at the political level to stand up for children's rights. Among other things, Save the Children has advisory status with the Economic and Social Council ( ECOSOC ) of the United Nations and supports the International Campaign for the Ban on Landmines ( ICBL ), which received the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize .
organization structure
Save the Children is a worldwide association: a total of 28 country organizations (as of 2018) belong to Save the Children International (Save the Children Alliance until 2010). The umbrella organization based in London has been coordinating worldwide project work since 2011. Since 2019, it has been led by the Swedish child rights activist Inger Ashing.
Save the Children carries out projects in more than 120 countries (as of 2018) that benefit children, their families and their environment. The work is financed by donations from private individuals, companies and public donors. The total revenue of Save the Children International and all 28 country organizations in 2017 was US $ 2.2 billion. Both Save the Children International and the individual country organizations account for the use of the donations in their publicly available annual reports.
Global campaigns
Save the Children works with global campaigns to improve the rights and situation of children worldwide and to draw attention to grievances.
Since 2016, the focus of the current Save the Children campaign “Every Last Child” has been on children who are excluded, disadvantaged or difficult to reach. The organization has set itself the goal of giving 15 million of these children access to medical care and high-quality education within three years. Past campaigns focused on topics such as child mortality (“EveryOne”, 2009–2015) or access to education for children in crisis areas (“Rewrite the Future”, 2006–2008).
The organization also received a lot of worldwide attention for its video "Most shocking a Second a Day", which was released in 2014 on the third anniversary of the war in Syria. In less than a week, more than 20 million people saw the video in which the theater of war was moved from Syria to London and the life of a little girl was turned upside down in no time. To date, the video has received more than 60 million views.
Save the Children Germany
Since the end of 2004 Save the Children has been represented as a non-profit organization with an office in Berlin. Save the Children Deutschland eV has been a full member of the international association since 2015. Before 2004, the organization had no headquarters in Germany, but was active from 1919 to the early 1960s with aid projects in Germany that were coordinated from other countries. After the First World War, children in Germany, along with children from Austria, were the first to benefit from the work of Save the Children. The Save the Children Union supported hospitals and orphanages and provided children with donations in kind and food. So-called “cocoa bars” were built in Berlin to look after children. A large part of the donations also went to the so-called " Quaker feed ". In addition, children in Leipzig, Cologne, Hamburg and Chemnitz were supported.
Even after the Second World War, Save the Children initially provided emergency aid for starving people with mass feedings. The organization also worked for refugees and displaced persons, for example in a refugee camp in Uelzen. Here Save the Children distributed clothing and food and ran a large kindergarten. The Swedish sister organization Rädda Barnen also set up training and apprentice projects across Germany in the vicinity of various refugee camps. In the early 1960s, the organization withdrew from the regaining strength of Germany.
Today, the statutory goal of Save the Children Germany is “to promote child and youth welfare and the exercise of all kinds of activities to protect and promote the rights of children in the areas of social and medical help and especially in promoting all kinds of support and help for children in need, who live in poverty and suffering all over the world. ”In practice, this means the acquisition of donations and the implementation of projects for children in need at home and abroad.
The Berlin office is divided into the areas of management, programs and advocacy, corporate partnerships and foundations, finance, administration and personnel, fundraising and communication. The management is the responsibility of the full-time executive board and the managing director of Save the Children Germany. The supervisory board and the general assembly are responsible for the control.
Save the Children Deutschland eV has received the DZI donation seal for the responsible handling of donations from the German Central Institute for Social Issues (DZI) , which is based on information provided by the organizations and does not allow more than 30% of income for advertising and administration. In the large donation check, which was carried out by the analysis and consulting company PHINEO on behalf of Spiegel Online in 2016 and which assesses the transparency of donation organizations, the organization received 4.2 out of a possible 5 points. In comparison with 50 other donation organizations, Save the Children Germany is in the top third.
Program work in Germany
Save the Children Germany has been implementing projects within Germany again since 2013. First with a program to improve educational opportunities for children in Germany. The organization is now also active in Germany in the areas of migration and flight as well as child protection. For example, in December 2015 Save the Children opened a “shelter and play area” for refugee children in the Berlin-Tempelhof emergency accommodation, where children were looked after and played by trained staff. The concept was adapted from other emergency shelters.
Campaigns and Actions
Save the Children draws attention to child rights issues in Germany with various campaigns and activities.
With the “scarf for life”, the organization and the women's magazine Brigitte have been calling for support for Syrian refugee children since 2014. During the campaign, the campaign scarf can be knitted yourself or bought in order to show solidarity with the Syrian children by wearing it. A portion of the sales price goes to Save the Children Germany. Every year celebrities participate in the campaign, such as B. Lavinia Wilson , Ingo Zamperoni , Anne-Sophie Mutter , and many more
From 2009 to 2015 Save the Children Germany took part in the international "EVERY ONE" campaign, with which the organization drew attention to the high child mortality rate in many developing countries. According to the organization, a large proportion of these children are dying of diseases that are curable and preventable with simple, inexpensive medical means. In Germany, the actor Christian Berkel and the swimmer Britta Steffen supported the campaign.
Save the Children is also active across organizations. So is the organization u. a. Member of the Global Education Campaign , in which non-governmental organizations and trade unions campaign for the right of all people to a good, inclusive education. With public actions and statements, the alliance draws attention to the inadequate implementation of this right and to the necessary measures to improve educational opportunities worldwide.
Save the Children Switzerland
Save the Children Switzerland has existed since 2006 as an independent and politically, ideologically and denominationally independent association. Save the Children Switzerland is Zewo-certified and finances its charitable work for the well-being of the children exclusively through donations from private individuals, foundations and companies as well as the public sector. The Zewo seal of approval stands for a dedicated, economical and effective use of donations and is granted for five years.
Save the Children campaigns for the rights of children in Switzerland and around the world and provides medical care, food, education and protection for children, regardless of their gender, origin or belief.
The national and international programs and projects of Save the Children Switzerland focus on education, health and nutrition, child protection, emergency and disaster relief and safeguarding children's rights.
In Switzerland, the children's rights organization is committed to a ban on corporal punishment. In addition, Save the Children implemented so-called child-friendly rooms in asylum and procedure centers. Child and youth-friendly rooms are an internationally tested and evaluated program for the professional support and protection of children and underage young people who live in communal accommodation during and after crisis situations. The program offers children and young people the opportunity to calm down and helps strengthen their coping mechanisms. A safe place, age-appropriate activities, development-promoting suggestions and clear structures allow the children to regain a bit of normalcy and security and offer them orientation and stability. She also serves as a project partner for initiatives that promote the integration, physical activity and personal development of children, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
With around a third of all project expenditures (2017 financial year), projects in the Asian region shape the geographic focus of Save the Children Switzerland's work; the activities in the Middle East and on the African continent are also central. In emergencies and disasters, Save the Children Switzerland takes part in internationally coordinated emergency aid calls. In recent years, collection campaigns for the hunger crisis in the Horn of Africa, for children in the Syrian conflict or for the Rohingya who fled Myanmar have been particularly relevant. Save the Children received donations totaling 28.3 million Swiss francs in 2017. In the same year, 88 cents of every franc donated went directly to national and international projects to promote and implement children's rights.
Save the Children Switzerland has been an official partner relief organization of Swiss Solidarity since 2015.
criticism
Prize for Tony Blair
In November 2014, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the organization's American arm. About 200 members defended themselves by arguing that honoring the initiator of the British participation in the Iraq war as the protector of the children was cynical and damaged the brand of the organization.
Imagery
In 2016 Save the Children Netherlands received the Rusty Radiator Award for the fundraising video - “Give to Children like Jon. Donate now! ”. The Rusty Radiator Award is presented annually by the Norwegian Students 'and Academics' International Assistance Fund (SAIH) to the fundraising video that stands out most through the negative use of stereotypes. The jury justified its decision as follows:
This video is the epitome of 'poverty pornography' as it focuses solely on the bare lives of the suffering children and fetishizes their bodies (eg their swollen bellies because of starvation). It presents people in the South as helpless and unable to overcome their sufferings without help from the outside.
Save the Children reacts to such criticism by pointing out that the images shown depict reality. It is not the pictures that would violate the dignity of the people depicted, but the circumstances that lead to their misery. According to Save the Children Germany, the guiding principle behind the use of fundraising materials like these is the thought that many children whose stories are being told are fighting for their lives. This reality should be shown so that as many people as possible are made aware of grievances and recognize that children in need can be helped. In doing so, it is carefully checked which image material is used in the TV or video spots. A contribution to the discussion about the representation of global poverty and the NGO communication provides the organization u. a. with the study "The People in the Pictures". Here u. a. Asked people whose life situation was mapped for fundraising purposes.
Cooperations with companies
Save the Children also works with internationally active companies and their foundations in its development projects. Such frequent co-operations between aid organizations are controversially discussed with regard to their advantages and disadvantages, critics criticize the danger of conflicts of interest. There are also similar collaborations with other aid organizations, but Save the Children was accused of not expressing any or hardly any criticism of the donors after the collaborations.
literature
- Clare Mulley: The Woman Who Saved the Children. Oneworld Publications, Oxford 2009, ISBN 1-85168-657-6 .
- Francesca M. Wilson: Rebel Daughter of a Country House: Life of Eglantyne Jebb. Allen & Unwin, London 1967.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/
- ↑ organizational structure. Save the Children Germany, accessed on November 16, 2018 .
- ↑ Mission and Vision. Save the Children Germany, accessed on November 16, 2018 .
- ^ Save the Children: Syria Crisis Response. September 2018, accessed November 16, 2018 .
- ^ Annual report 2015. Save the Children Germany, accessed on November 16, 2018 .
- ↑ Lena Klimkeit: "The helpers go as far as they can". Zeit Online, April 29, 2015, accessed November 16, 2018 .
- ^ Clare Mulley: The Woman Who Saved the Children . 2009, ISBN 978-1-85168-722-0 , pp. 232-299 .
- ↑ Our History. Save the Children, accessed January 31, 2019 .
- ↑ Clare Mullley: The Woman Who Saved the Children . 2009, ISBN 978-1-85168-722-0 , pp. 300 .
- ↑ About us. Save the Children Germany, accessed on November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Information on the order of magnitude: The trustees report 2017 , page 5.
- ↑ Annual Report 2017. Save the Children International, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Tsunami Ten Years On. Stories Of Change. Save the Children, 2014, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ^ Helping Haiti's Children. Save the Children, 2015, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ The Ebola Crisis. Save the Children, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ^ Emergency aid East Africa. Save the Children, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Our Response in Syria. Save the Children, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Picking up the pieces. Rebuilding the lives of Mosul's children after years of conflict and violence. Save the Children, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Rescue ship brings more than 300 refugees to safety. Development Policy Online, September 12, 2016, accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Steve Scherer: "Save the Children suspends migrant rescues in Mediterranean" Reuters of October 23, 2017
- ^ NGO branch. Retrieved November 23, 2018 .
- ↑ Annual Report 2017. Save the Children International: accessed November 23, 2018 .
- ^ "Every Last Child" campaign page. Save the Children, accessed January 31, 2019 .
- ↑ Kamapgne "Every One". Accessed January 31, 2019 .
- ^ Report "Rewrite the Future". Save the Children, accessed January 31, 2019 .
- ↑ Anti-war video becomes a YouTube hit. RP Online, March 10, 2014, accessed January 31, 2019 .
- ^ The National Archives. Retrieved March 5, 2019 .
- ^ The National Archives. Retrieved March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ John Kreyenpoth: Foreign aid for the German Reich . Stuttgart 1932.
- ^ Save the Children Germany / Archive
- ^ Statutes "Save the Children Deutschland eV" Retrieved on March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ http://www.savethechildren.de/wer-wir-sind/vorstand/
- ↑ http://www.savethechildren.de/wer-wir-sind/organisationsstruktur/aufsichtsrat/
- ↑ Information on Save the Children website of the DZI, accessed on February 4, 2012
- ↑ Donation organizations in the transparency check. Phineo, accessed March 5, 2019 .
- ^ Annual report 2013. Save the Children Germany, p. 30 , accessed on March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ Cordula Eubel: Child-friendly zone for refugees. Der Tagesspiegel, May 24, 2016, accessed on March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ "A scarf for life 2017": Set an example with us! October 25, 2018, accessed March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ Global Education Campaign. Retrieved March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ http://www.savethechildren.ch/jahresbericht
- ^ The 26 partner relief organizations of Swiss Solidarity. In: Swiss Solidarity. Retrieved February 7, 2019 .
- ↑ Harriet Sherwood: Save the Children staff furious over 'global legacy' award for Tony Blair , The Guardian , November 25, 2014
- ^ Rusty Radiator Award. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on January 20, 2017 ; Retrieved January 20, 2017 (UK English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ The People in the Pictures. Save the Children, March 2017, accessed May 24, 2019 .
- ↑ Corporate donations to NGOs - the credibility that may be sold . In: Deutschlandfunk . ( deutschlandfunk.de [accessed on May 5, 2017]).
