Advancing Children’s Rights through Law and Policy

This presentation focuses on the experiences of involving children and young people in law and policy work drawing on the case studies of the International and Canadian Child Rights and Partnership Project (ICCRP). We discuss the ways children participate in the development of child-related laws and policies and the different leverage points for navigating across the power dynamics at play for children given a legacy of children’s exclusion from the political realms. We consider the various socio-political landscapes, the importance of structures and mechanisms for supporting children’s participation in the development of law and policy, and the significance of advocacy and strategic work at the local and broader levels. In examining the many ways groups of children across the globe are engaging and informing policies and laws, we reflect on the relational component of these examples of children’s participation with families, communities, the different interest groups and civil society.