Children’s rights symposium 2019
Supporting a symposium on children’s rights in a time of legislative and policy change.
About the project
This grant will support the symposium “Contemporary issues for children’s rights: international and national contexts” in August 2019 in Wellington, New Zealand. It will fund the costs of bringing several distinguished children’s rights experts to the symposium and to related engagements. The grant will also assist with publication costs for a report.
The symposium and the resulting publication aim to:
- Analyse the status and awareness of the international children’s rights framework in New Zealand’s constitutional and political context, particularly Te Tiriti o Waitangi
- Analyse case studies of the application, and potential application, of the framework in New Zealand and internationally, in the areas of the care system, criminal jurisdiction, the Family Court, and the voice of the child
- Discuss how the framework can be applied in the particular context and culture of Aotearoa New Zealand, particularly for tamariki and rangatahi Māori
- Encourage capability building, networking and awareness of the framework in the academic and advocacy sectors, and consider what lessons can be learnt from international colleagues in areas such as strategic litigation, advocacy strategies, and reporting to international human rights bodies.
Read the collection of reflections from the symposium edited by Associate Professor Nessa Lynch: Children’s Rights in Aotearoa New Zealand – Reflections on the 30th Anniversary of The Convention on the Rights of the Child
Grant amount
$13,130 in 2019. This is a co-funded project with the New Zealand Law Foundation, which is contributing the same amount.
About Dr Nessa Lynch
Dr Lynch is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law, Victoria University of Wellington. Her research interests lie in youth justice, criminal justice and children’s rights. She has a strong interest in the translation of academic research into law, practice and policy.
Visit: https://www.victoria.ac.nz/law/about/staff/nessa-lynch
Contact person
Dr Nessa Lynch
Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, Victoria University of Wellington
“This grant will support a critical discussion on the rights and interests of children in a time of significant legislative and policy change and the 30 year anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.”