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Youth
Advocate Program International is a 501(c)(3) non-profit
organization founded in 1994, opening in Washington,
DC, in 1996. Our staff promotes and protects the rights
and well-being of the world’s youth, giving particular
attention to children victimized by conflict, exploitation,
and state and personal violence.
We work to prevent and eliminate the worst forms of
child labor, the use of children in armed conflict,
commercial sexual exploitation of children, and the
practice of incarcerating children as adults. We help
to protect and ensure rights and services for children
affected by war, exploitation, homelessness, statelessness,
discrimination, HIV/AIDS, and for refugee and internally-displaced
children. We provide voice and visability for vulnerable
children everywhere.
In order to develop sound strategies and policy, we
serve on numerous national and international child rights
and protection committees,
including the Child Labor Coalition, International Advisory
Committee to the Fair Labor Association, International
Advisory Committee to the Child Welfare League of America,
the NGO Committee on UNICEF, and UN Study on Violence
against Children.
We
have produced nine books
and numerous resources papers,
this website, a series of curriculum
modules, and are in the process of gathering research
for several new publications.
Humanitarian relief and development agencies depend
on organizations like YAP International to ensure the
public and policy-makers are educated on these issues,
and move these issues to center stage in the national
and international arena. Therefore, our work is critical
in preventing these atrocities; in protecting children
currently affected and those at-risk; and, in ensuring
victimization, exploitation, and violence does not extend
to future generations.
•
promote the creation, implementation and enforcement
of international legal norms and protections for youth.
•
research, develop, and disseminate publications on critical
international youth issues, and serve as an education
and information resource for individuals, organizations,
and agencies throughout the world.
•
design, coordinate, conduct, and support meetings, seminars,
conferences, and summits, to raise awareness, educate,
train, and generate effective responses to harms confronting
youth.
•
provide advice and counsel, and encourage communication
and cooperative efforts among youth-serving organizations
and others interested in joining the effort to promote,
protect, and support the rights of youth.
•
nurture the positive potential of young people, enabling
them to become their own best advocates.
Based in Washington, DC, we are better able to educate
non-governmental partners, policy-makers, and the public;
and to coordinate our activities with numerous human
rights and youth advocacy agencies through our work
serving on numerous national and international child
protection committees.
Our
work in promoting these issues and protecting children
is focused on all areas where these practices occur,
including in your own community. Unfortunately, many
of these abuses and atrocities are not only happening
in the far reaches of the world, they are taking place
in our own neighborhoods.
We
can provide presentations, training,
consultation, school curriculum
modules, and general information
to anyone in need. If you need our help, wherever you
are, please contact
us.
Please
feel encouraged to take a look at a summary
of our recent activities.
© copyright - Youth Advocate Program International
2003-04
Last updated 8/31/2004
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