As previously mentioned here, this is a busy time for Alalay in Santa Cruz. The regional co-ordinator Ximena Rojas Landivar is one of the main organisers of the International Street Workers’ Conference, organised as part of Dynamo-International Street Workers’ Network, a network which aims to support “street workers” – professionals who work with children, young people and adults on the streets.
Running from the 20-25th October, the Conference brings together a huge number of people, including representatives from the Bolivian Government (at national, departmental and municipal levels) and various international/national networks and civil society groups. Delegates will discuss issues based around a series of questions covering three main areas: political, methodological and training, whilst deciding what their focus should be for 2015-16.
Practical questions to be discussed include: what policies are necessary, pertinent and applicable to enable social inclusion of marginalised groups? What have your experiences been (both positive and negative) in terms of implementing policies for people living and/or working on the streets? What are the minimum requirements for the successful training of “street educators” (professionals who go and speak to children still living and working on the streets)?
There will also be talks from Paula Vargas (UNICEF) about the International Convention on the Rights of the Child and Rosario Valenzuela (Bolivian Vice Ministry for Social Defense and Controlled Substances) about the national plan for drug reduction in Bolivia, alongside many other presentations.
Street work and building a relationship with children still on the streets is a fundamental part of Alalay’s work. Read more about the challenges of working on the streets here (a Dynamo publication, entitled “On the Street: A practical guide for new social street workers”) or find out about Alalay’s street work and other stages of activity with their children here. We are thrilled that Alalay is so intrinsically involved in what promises to be a fascinating conference, and very excited to hear about the ideas that stem from the discussions! Watch this space.
