Children are our future: Children, Climate Change, Social Equity

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Children are our futureChildren, Climate
Change, Social Equity SecurityThe big issues
as we face our future

• Dr Cindy Kiro
• New Zealands Childrens Commissioner

National Funders Forum Te Papa 2007
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An Inconvenient Truth
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www.enviroschools.co.nz
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• all the people who caused oil depletion,
  climate change and ecological destruction aren't
  going to be around to deal with the effects So
  all the problems are going to be burdened on the
  youth. We're the ones who are going to have to
  find new ways of surviving after peak oil, and
  during climate chaos.

Young Member of Just Focus Global Education Centre
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Another inconvenient truth

• The Gross Domestic Product counts building
  prisons and ambulances to clear our highways of
  carnage Yet it does not allow for the health of
  our children, the quality of their education, or
  the joy of their play It measures neither our
  wit nor our courage neither our wisdom nor our
  learning neither our compassion nor our devotion
  it measures everything, in short, except that
  which makes life worthwhile.
• Robert Kennedy, cited in David Piachaud, 2001.
  Child poverty, opportunities and quality of life.
  The Political Quarterly

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And closer to home.
Health and Safety of children Overview
Innocenti Report Card, 7 Feb 2007
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Source Data summarised by Dr Nikki Turner from
Fig 44,The Living Standards Report, MSD 2004
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Estimated annual per capita VoteHealth
expenditure on health and disability support
services, 2001/02
Ministry of Health, 2003 New Zealand Health and
Disability Sector overview
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Source Pedro Carneiro and James Heckman (2003)
Herald graphic 23.05.03
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Thinking short and long-term

• by and large civil servants and politicians
  dont do 2050 They are of course understandably
  at the moment focused on the next 6 months
  because thats a much more pressing timeframe,
  for all sorts of more obvious political reasons.
  Even so, casting out to 2050 is massively complex
  for people to undertake. The good thing I
  suppose is that you dont really find anybody who
  disagrees with the statement that we have to do
  this process, this transition. We have to move
  towards more sustainable and inclusive
  societies.
• Jonathan Porritt, Chair of the UK Government
  Sustainability Commission (2006). Observations
  on public service and political efforts to meet
  their goal to reduce greenhouse gas omissions by
  60 by 2050.

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What maltreated children most need is a healthy
community to buffer the pain, distress and loss
caused by their earlier trauma. What works to
heal them is anything that increases the number
and quality of a childs relationships. What
helps is consistent, patient and repetitive
loving care.
Professor Bruce Perry, 2006
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Components of a Societal Strategy for Children
Adapted from Graham Vimpani (2003) Service
networks to improve child health and wellbeing
Responding to the new morbidity
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