As part of the final activities of the project ‘Child-centred and accessible crisis management for an effective protection system (CARES)’ funded by the CERV programme of the European Union, Helmut Sax and Stephen Rabenlehner as well as intern Nicole Vidan held workshops in various Austrian cities on three dates in July. These took place in two Child and Youth Ombudsoffices (Graz, Vienna) and at a SOS Children’s Village facility (Salzburg). In Vienna, representatives also from the Vienna Human Rights Office, the Austrian Disability Council, the Austrian Ombudsman Board and the Vienna youth probation service took part alongside staff from the respective host institutions.

The workshops were organised in such a way that, in a first step, introductory questions on the significance and experiences of children’s rights and child participation in practice were asked via a survey tool, followed by a presentation of the project results. Findings were based in particular on project work from 2023, including workshops with young people, as well as interviews, focus group discussions and a detailed online survey with child protection professionals. This was followed by an exchange of experiences from the respective organisations with regard to ways of ensuring crisis-resilient child protection systems in Austria.

In Salzburg and Vienna, the project team was also supported in the discussions by young people involved in the project: Antonella Oyhenart and Anja Mittelberger, Youth Ambassadors for UN Children’s Rights & Global Goals (SDG) reported on their participatory work with children and young people and Cathrine Eder and Maya Tauscher, students at the Maygasse Business Academy BHAK/BHAS Vienna 13, presented their project Mindful Pathways, a card game on the topic of mental health.

The project will be completed at the end of August, with publication also of the national report for Austria and a comparative country report (Belgium, Croatia, Austria).