Photo by: Palestine Red Crescent Society
20 November, marks World Children’s Day 2024 at a time of increasing global challenges and crises.
From social media bombardment including targeted mis and disinformation to a very real global epidemic and accelerating climate crisis a childhood in the 2020ties comes with fear and anxiety for children. At the same time, too many children’s worst fears have already materialized – they have lost parents, siblings, friends and homes due to war and mass displacement in places like Gaza, Sudan or Ukraine or due to wild-fires, floods or earthquakes in places like Chile, Chad or Nepal. There is no doubt that such experiences will have considerable and long-term mental effects.
Across the globe Red Cross Red Crescent staff and volunteers are engaged in ensuring mental health and psychosocial support to children and youth.
We cannot allow the weight of these challenges to pull us down into despair and apathy. We need to act because children are quite literally our only hope, much like we are theirs. For inspiration we only need to look at our colleagues in Gaza or Ukraine still managing to create spaces or at least moments of relief for children amid carnage, chaos and unfolding tragedy.
The IFRC Psychosocial Centre has compiled a few key-resources for colleagues working on the mental well-being of children exposed during disasters and emergencies.
Resources
