Helping children when it matters most

Reading free newspapers, scrolling the smartphone feed or watching the evening news on the sofa: Too often we are confronted with shocking images of catastrophes. Disasters that turn human lives upside down in a matter of moments.

The international children's rights organization Save the Children is one of the first to be on site in such situations. With decades of experience in emergency relief in 120 countries, Save the Children is one of the largest humanitarian organizations in the world. And their helpers are always confronted with fates that leave no one indifferent.

Naomi* (6) lives with her family in Indonesia in a temporary shelter since her home was destroyed by the earthquake at the end of September.

Save the Children responds to more than 100 emergencies every year. Be it environmental disasters, disease outbreaks or refugee movements. Save the Children was also in action a few weeks ago when an earthquake and a subsequent tsunami caused unimaginable damage on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. 500,000 people were immediately affected - including 260,000 children.

Protecting children is one of the core tasks of Save the Children. In the chaos following a natural disaster, children are often separated from their relatives and need special protection. "Many children sleep on the streets because they simply can't go anywhere. Many are filled with fear and traumatized. No child should ever have to go through this kind of experience." reports Zubedy Koteng, child protection expert from Save the Children who was in Indonesia. In these situations, Save the Children, through its local partner organisation, builds child-friendly rooms where children can play. In the first four weeks after the earthquake, Save the Children built more than 10 child-friendly rooms in Indonesia to provide affected children with a place where they can easily become children again and are cared for. But that' s when the biggest challenge begins ...

"Children need to be reunited with their loved ones as soon as possible. This is a top priority and requires careful coordination between aid organisations, authorities and the government," Koteng continues. Bringing unaccompanied children together with their families is a focus of Save the Children's work.

Rizky's Story

Besides all the tragedies that such a catastrophe brings with it, fortunately there are also stories that give hope. One of them is the story of Rizky* (7), who was separated from his family by the earthquake. Volunteers discovered the little boy between the rubble after the earthquake and registered him with the local welfare authorities.

After two weeks of uncertainty and worrying whether he would ever see his family again, Rizky received the message he had so much hoped for. Thanks to the systematic tracing and reunification work of Save the Children's local partner organisation, Rizky's father and grandmother were identified. Rizky was incredibly relieved when he was handed over from the care of Save the Children into the arms of his family. An overwhelming moment for everyone involved.

Rizky* and his father hug each other at their reunion after two weeks

Learn more about Save the Children's work and the current situation in Indonesia here

Stadtlandkind and Save the Children - a strong team for children

Stadtlandkind and Save the Children work together to give children a better future. For example via https://www.kidis.ch/2ndfashion, the platform for second-hand fashion from Stadtlandkind. There, customers have the opportunity to donate their proceeds to Save the Children. During this year's Christmas season, Stadtlandkind will also be offering special edition products, for which part of the price will be donated to Save the Children to support children like Naomi* and Rizky*.

* Names changed to protect children's privacy