Name: Why we need to end the era of orphanages
Uploaded: 2017-08-29T19:39:04Z
Duration: 13 min 1 s
Description: Could it be wrong to help children in need by starting an orphanage? In this eye-opening talk about the bad consequences of good intentions, Tara Winkler speaks out against the spread of orphanages in developing countries, caused in part by foreign donors, and details the harm done to children when they are separated from their families and left to grow up in institutions.

Could it be wrong to help children in need by starting an orphanage? In this eye-opening talk about the bad consequences of good intentions, Tara Winkler speaks out against the spread of orphanages in developing countries, caused in part by foreign donors, and details the harm done to children when they are separated from their families and left to grow up in institutions.

Why we need to end the era of orphanages

Child protection leader, activist, author

Starting an orphanage may seem like the best way to help vulnerable children, but most children in such institutions are not true orphans. In Cambodia, the number of orphanages rose by 75 percent since 2005, yet many of the children have families who could care for them with the right support. Research shows that growing up in institutions harms children, leading to lifelong emotional and psychological struggles. Shifting support from orphanages to family-based care breaks cycles of poverty and helps children thrive.