A real change is possible only when the change begins at the roots; our children are the roots of the world’s future.
At this very moment somewhere in the world there are organisations and people working their souls for the betterment of the society. Be it the UNESCO or some random human, the world knows the worth of our children. The world knows that they are the future. Organisations are working round the clock around the globe. Yet the issues faced by our children remain an unsolved mystery. The statistics still shows the numbers against the well-being of our children, irrespective of whatever measures been taken for them. The top ten issues faced by the children globally are listed as below (source listverse)
Violence through Indoctrination, Poverty, Life as refugees, Lack of Access to Education, Child Neglect, Child labour, Child prostitution, Child pornography, Trafficking and slavery, and Military use of Children.
This list above is based on the perspective of our society on children’s issues. ie what our society views as problems faced by children. This, of course will vary from country to country. If Military use of children is the top problem in the middle east, child prostitution would be the major problem in Southeast Asian countries. So the preventive measures and the strategies should be customized according to the needs of the children in their respective society.
As noted earlier, the problems are seen in the perspective of the society. We are missing a point actually there itself. What about the perspective of the children? If they make a list of 10 problems the face, what would be that? We need not be surprised if their list has “Mommy not allows chocolates”. They may not be matured enough to foresee their future as we elders do. But when we find solutions to their problems we should also see the solutions from their perspective. How effective our solutions are reaching them.
For example, When a toddler suffers from poverty, providing food would be an enough solution for that time being. But when a teenage kid suffers from poverty, just providing food is not the solution, also educating about the poverty and sustainable ways to overcome it becomes a part of the solution. We also need to care about how they receive our ideologies of poverty and methods we suggest to them to overcome it. Because children with developed / developing consciousness are not just robots to follow our instructions. Though we are doing good deeds for them, it is equally our responsibility to ensure that it reaches them effectively.
Overall, we insist on three major point precisely.
1. Understand problems from children’s perspective
2. Work on grass-root level and ensure our efforts benefits the children
3. Create a network and a model that is self-sustained.
Voice of Little Hearts
We taglined the project “This could be your child’s voice” which says it all. We are going to address issues faced by children in India. So the priority of the issues may vary from the global context. We have a list of issues faced by children in Indian scenario and that will be covered. The project focuses on adhering to the three points listed above. ie. To address issues faced by children by understanding in their perspective, VLH will reach children direct and discuss their problems individually along with their ecosystem and this project will create a network of volunteers, a working model which will keep going.
So how VLH is going to work?
Overview: VLH will begin as a publishing project, then reach children across India as a community that cares for them and will continue to evolve as a supportive system for the children directly.
Project Preview: The core team of VLH will have members from Propel Steps, Writers and Activists who works for Children. Based on the core team’s inputs 12 wings (teams) will work on writing in twelve languages. Each wing will have it’s Lead(s), Editors, Translators, Writers and Project Coordinators. Each wing will collaborate with one another. The core team will ensure the overall development of the project and support all the wings. The individual responsibilities will be communicated later after the individuals joining the project.
Once the book is completed, it will be released simultaneously in 12 languages across the country and the globe. We Propel Steps and the core team will ensure to avail the books free of cost for children across India with the support of local NGOs and Sponsorships. The distribution of VLH to children will happen via planned events and workshops (the details will be communicated at the later stages of the project)
For Propel Steps, this is a non-profit project. However, considering the huge costs involved regionally we may tie-up with various publishers to release the book for general readers and parents community. The profit earned via sales will be majorly used for the events associated with VLH and the royalties will go to the respective wings. We Propel Steps would just remain as the founder of this initiative and seek no remunerative returns. However will hold the accountability to ensure the project is used for its purpose and the children get benefitted continuously.
What can you do now?
We have no hidden secrets as we have made the project plan very transparent. All you need to do is Think. Think of where you can be a part of this project and what role you want to play in this. You can be writer, a translator, a social media promoter, a project coordinator, a PR or a NGO who can be part of this project, a publisher who wants to publish this project, a school who wants to be associated in this project. Overall we need your support and we value it. We will deliver and ensure every ounce of your efforts are converted into smiles of some random child. That could be your child also. 🙂
So Join us.
Get in touch now by joining our Facebook Group here.
Contact publish@propelsteps.com or +91 72000 48566 for more details and to discuss your queries / interest.
