Save the Children Fund (SCF) was at its foundation in 1919 a value-driven organization. The values, or guiding principles, of the founding generation are the lens through which I look at the history of SCF, and the associated histories of war and peace, human rights and NGO-state relations. These guiding principles are identified as universalism, utilitarianism and optimistic pacificism. They can be understood as a paradigm to which the social community which made up the founding generation of SCF gave their assent. The first chapter locates the founding generation within the political culture of the anti-war movement. Succeeding chapters detail the metamorphosis of SCIF from a'contentious social movement into a respectable national organization. As soon as the organization adopted a national rather than a universal orientation, the coordinates of all its guiding principles shifted. In particular the optimistic pacificism of the founding generation was replaced by pessimistic defencism. It was not until after the Cold War that SCIF began to realign itself with its original guiding principles. The three guiding principles are found to be of continuing relevance. Universalism has been reasserted as a positive creed leading SCF to seize political opportunities to reach out to children from all sides. The organization has adopted a utilitarian perspective that affirms the dynamic role of young people in generating their own futures. Lastly, the primacy attached to peace by war-affected people has underlined SCFs urgent mission to uphold an optimistic belief in the possibility of peace.

Save the Children Fund (SCF) was at its foundation in 1919 a value-driven organization. The values, or guiding principles, of the founding generation are the lens through which I look at the history of SCF, and the associated histories of war and peace, human rights and NGO-state relations. These guiding principles are identified as universalism, utilitarianism and optimistic pacificism. They can be understood as a paradigm to which the social community which made up the founding generation of SCF gave their assent. The first chapter locates the founding generation within the political culture of the anti-war movement. Succeeding chapters detail the metamorphosis of SCIF from a'contentious social movement into a respectable national organization. As soon as the organization adopted a national rather than a universal orientation, the coordinates of all its guiding principles shifted. In particular the optimistic pacificism of the founding generation was replaced by pessimistic defencism. It was not until after the Cold War that SCIF began to realign itself with its original guiding principles. The three guiding principles are found to be of continuing relevance. Universalism has been reasserted as a positive creed leading SCF to seize political opportunities to reach out to children from all sides. The organization has adopted a utilitarian perspective that affirms the dynamic role of young people in generating their own futures. Lastly, the primacy attached to peace by war-affected people has underlined SCFs urgent mission to uphold an optimistic belief in the possibility of peace. / Vera Steele Studentship in Peace Research

Since Tajikistan’s independence in 1991 the number of rural girls leaving school after grade 9 has been increasing at an alarming rate. In order to improve rural girls’ secondary school attendance and retention, in 2006 Save the Children, local non-governmental organization (NGO) partners, and the Ministry of Education implemented a two-year UNICEF-funded Girls’ Education Project (GEP). This mixed-method study compares rural girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities at six schools (three GEP schools and three non-GEP schools) in two districts located in regions with the lowest levels of female secondary school participation nationwide. Two research questions guided this study: 1) What factors serve as obstacles or enablers to girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities in rural Tajikistan? and 2) How did the GEP attempt to overcome factors limiting rural girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities and which aspects of the project were perceived to be most effective? The study’s theoretical framework contains concepts from two sets of theories: 1) social reproduction (schooling as a means of maintaining and reproducing the status quo) and 2) empowerment (schooling as a means of changing the status quo). Data collected reveals two groups’ perspectives: 1) adult participants (Ministry of Education officials, NGO staff, school administrators and teachers) and 2) rural female upper secondary school students. A multi-level data analysis process was used to compare findings within and across districts. Factors that serve as either an obstacle or an enabler of girls’ educational experiences and opportunities include those relating to the community/society, family, school, and self. Factors related to community/society include the dominant belief that a girl is “grown-up” by 15 and should no longer go to school which intersects with family poverty to create a major barrier to girls’ non-compulsory secondary schooling. Factors affecting girls’ schooling related to the family were the most significant determinant of a girl’s schooling. Of all the GEP activities, participants consistently considered the girls’ overnight camp to be the “best” activity. Findings show how enabling just a few girls to return to school significantly increases the likelihood of other girls being allowed to attend school in these rural communities.

Det är inget nytt att undersöka interaktioner på Facebook, dock är det oftast ur privatpersoners synvinkel Facebook undersöks och inte lika ofta ur en organisations synvinkel. Den här studien syftar till att fylla en del av gapet i medie- och kommunikationsforskningen om hur ideella organisationer beter sig på Facebook genom att undersöka den narrativa processen hos två ideella organisationer och hur delaktiga användare är i organisationernas berättelse beroende på organisationens storlek, Kvinnojouren Embla och Rädda Barnen. Därför är studiens frågeställning utformad som följande; på vilket sätt interagerar ideella organisationer med sina medlemmar via organisationens Facebook-sida? Hur utvecklas interaktiva berättelser på organisationernas Facebook-sida? Vilka skillnader kan identifieras mellan en stor och liten organisation? Studien utgår ifrån Earl och Kimport (2011) som menar att organisationer kan använda sig av två strategier i sin kommunikation på nätet; supersize strategier, som kortfattat innebär att organisationer tar sina befintliga offline-strategier och gör dem större, starkare och kraftfullare via internet, samt teori 2.0 strategier, som kortfattat innebär att organisationer använder nya, innovativa metoder för att förmedla sina budskap. Solis och Breakenridge (2010) skriver om hur interaktivitetsmöjligheter förändrar hur organisationer bör tänka när de skriver meddelanden på nätet och att organisationer bör sluta se sina intressenter som en stor publik, utan att de ska betraktas och behandlas som individer. De menar även att det är viktigt att alltid hålla sig uppkopplad för att det alltid händer något på nätet. Det kan resultera i utmaningar för ideella organisationer eftersom att Greenberg och MacAulay (2009) menar att de inte prioriterar att uppdatera sina sidor och därför kan ha det svårt att anpassa sig till nätverkets sociologiska dynamik. Fortsättningsvis undersöker studien Kvinnojouren Embla och Rädda Barnens respektive Facebook-sidor med hjälp av netnografi under en veckas tid. Netnografi är en observationsmetod för nätgemenskaper som liknar etnografi, men bör erkännas som en egen forskningsmetod separat från etnografin även om de båda utgår från samma pelare. Studien har funnit att Kvinnojouren Emblas Facebook-sida är betydligt mindre aktiv än Rädda Barnen både med publicering från organisationen men även användarna. Det är även en annan typ av diskurs på respektive sida. På Emblas sida strävar användarna mot en liten gemenskap, och på Rädda Barnens sida strävar användarna mot att förmedla sanning och rättvisa. Studien har även sett att det är användarna på Rädda Barnens Facebook-sida som till störst del driver interaktionerna mellan organisation och användare, vilket visar på att användarna använder teori 2.0 strategier och på så sätt blir individuella aktivister. / To study interaction on Facebook is nothing new; however, those studies are mostly made from an individual’s point of view and not as often from an organizations point of view. This study aims to fill a part of that hole in media and communication studies by studying the narrative process of two nonprofit organizations on Facebook, and how the users are part of the organizations storytelling according to size and resources, Kvinnojouren Embla and Save the Children. The studies main questions are therefore the following; in what way do nonprofit organizations interact with their members on the organizations Facebook page? How do interactive stories develop on the organizations Facebook page? What differences can be identified between a big and a small organization? The study is based on Earl and Kimport (2011) who says that organizations can use two strategies in their communication online; supersize strategies, that briefly means that organizations uses that same strategies from their offline communication and applies them to the internet to make it bigger better and stronger, and theory 2.0 strategies, that briefly means that organizations – or individuals – use new and innovative methods to mediate their message. Solis and Breakenridge (2010) writes about how the possibilities for interactivity changes how organizations should think while writing a message online and to stop seeing their stakeholders as a big audience, but to regard and treat them as individuals. They also claim that it is important to always be connected because something always happens online. This can result in difficulties for nonprofit organizations because, according to Greenberg & MacAulay (2009), they do not prioritize their pages, and therefore will have a hard time adapting to the sociological dynamics of Facebook. Further, the study examines Kvinnojouren Embla and Save the Children’s respective Facebook-pages with help from netnography during a week. Netnography is an observation method for examining online communities. The method is similar to ethnography, but should be known as a research method on its own, even though they both are based on the same pillars. The study has found that Kvinnojouren Embla’s Facebook-page is considerably less active than Save the Children’s, both regarding publications from the organization, but also the users. There is also another kind of discourse on the respective pages.  On Emblas page, the users strive towards a small community, and on Save the Children’s page the users strive towards mediating the truth and justice. The study has also found that it is the users on Save the Children’s Facebook-page that to the most part drives the interactivity between organization and user, which shows that the users uses theory 2.0 strategies and in that way becomes individual activists.

Since Tajikistan’s independence in 1991 the number of rural girls leaving school after grade 9 has been increasing at an alarming rate. In order to improve rural girls’ secondary school attendance and retention, in 2006 Save the Children, local non-governmental organization (NGO) partners, and the Ministry of Education implemented a two-year UNICEF-funded Girls’ Education Project (GEP). This mixed-method study compares rural girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities at six schools (three GEP schools and three non-GEP schools) in two districts located in regions with the lowest levels of female secondary school participation nationwide. Two research questions guided this study: 1) What factors serve as obstacles or enablers to girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities in rural Tajikistan? and 2) How did the GEP attempt to overcome factors limiting rural girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities and which aspects of the project were perceived to be most effective? The study’s theoretical framework contains concepts from two sets of theories: 1) social reproduction (schooling as a means of maintaining and reproducing the status quo) and 2) empowerment (schooling as a means of changing the status quo). Data collected reveals two groups’ perspectives: 1) adult participants (Ministry of Education officials, NGO staff, school administrators and teachers) and 2) rural female upper secondary school students. A multi-level data analysis process was used to compare findings within and across districts. Factors that serve as either an obstacle or an enabler of girls’ educational experiences and opportunities include those relating to the community/society, family, school, and self. Factors related to community/society include the dominant belief that a girl is “grown-up” by 15 and should no longer go to school which intersects with family poverty to create a major barrier to girls’ non-compulsory secondary schooling. Factors affecting girls’ schooling related to the family were the most significant determinant of a girl’s schooling. Of all the GEP activities, participants consistently considered the girls’ overnight camp to be the “best” activity. Findings show how enabling just a few girls to return to school significantly increases the likelihood of other girls being allowed to attend school in these rural communities.

Denna uppsats tar sin början i ett intresse av att studera ungdomars konstituerande av identitet. Vi valde att utföra vår studie i Rädda Barnens projekt Ellen & allan som arrangerar samtalsgrupper med en normkritisk agenda för ungdomar i 14-års ålder. Syftet är att genom en kvalitativ studie skapa förståelse för hur ungdomarna som deltar i Ellen & allan konstituerar en maskulin respektive feminin identitet, samt betydelsen av ungdomarnas sociala relationer för detta konstituerande.  Studiens omfattning utgörs av tre intervjuer med projektledare och samtalsledare för projektet och av sex timmars observation vid fyra separata tillfällen i en Ellengrupp och i en allangrupp. Intervjuerna bidrog till kunskap om projektet som förberedde oss och skapade ett tydligt fokus inför vårt möte med fältet. Intervjuerna var utformade på ett sådant sätt att de kom att generera material som korrelerade med våra observationsdata.  Från vår analys av intervjuer och observationer drar vi slutsatsen att ungdomarnas behov av att skapa och upprätthålla sociala relationer leder till en konformitet inom samtalsgrupperna som bidrar till att ungdomarnas konstituerande av maskulin respektive feminin identitet görs med ursprung i en maskulin heterosexuell hegemoni. I denna hegemoni förknippas den maskulina identiteten med överordning och makt medan den feminina identiteten är passiv och underordnad och anses vara den maskulina identitetens motsats. / The notion of this study initially started taking shape through our interest in studying the constitution of identity in young adolescent people. The study was carried out in the Save the Children project Ellen & allan which organizes discussion groups with a norm-critical agenda for young people in the age of 14. The purpose of this study was to analyze how young people participating in Ellen & allan constitutes a masculine and feminine identity, and the importance of young people's social relationships for this constituent.  The study consists of three interviews with project managers and discussion leaders of the project, and of six hours of observation on four separate occasions in an Ellen-group and in an allan-group. The interviews contributed to an understanding of the project which prepared us and created a clear focus for our meeting with the field. The interviews were also designed in such a way that they came to produce data that could be correlated with our observation data.  From our analysis of the interviews and observations, we conclude that young people’s need to create and maintain social relationships lead to conformity within the discussion groups, contributing to adolescents constituting a masculine and feminine identity that originates from a masculine heterosexual hegemony. In such hegemony the masculine identity consists of attributes of agency and power, whereas the feminine identity is passive and subordinate and is considered being the opposite of a masculine identity.

Som en reaktion på kriget i Ukraina sökte Rädda Barnens lokalförening i Halmstad kunskap om hur de kunde fylla behoven som flyktingarna hade, vilket resulterade i att projektet Barnvänlig Plats startades och var den första direktstödsverksamheten i Halland som lades utanför flyktingförläggningarna. De arbetar efter barnkonventionen och strävade efter att skapa en plats dit utsatta barn kunde söka sig till för att få trygghet och möjlighet till utveckling. Det finns bristande kunskap kring hur direkstödsversamheter kan etableras och komplettera den offentliga sektorn. Syftet med denna kandidatuppsats är att öka förståelsen för de handlingar som varit viktiga i förverkligandet av projekt Barnvänlig Plats och öka förståelsen för hur en direkstödsverksamhet kan etableras så att barns rättigheter kan stärkas nu och i framtiden. Frågeställningen som behandlas är hur det kommer sig att projekt Barnvänlig plats har blivit ett relativt lyckat projekt. För att besvara syfte och frågeställning hämtar studien inspiration från Grounded Theory och har i kombination med kvalitativa intervjuer samlat in intervjupersonernas erfarenheter av projektet som utmynnat i teorier. Kodningsprocessen resulterade i fyra handlingar: initiativ, samverkan, lokalisering, och uppmärksammat projekt som skapade verksamheten från grunden. Den teoretiska referensramen i studien utgörs av social handling och sociala band som används för att skapa en förståelse för hur resultatet besvarar syftet med studien. Slutsatsen blir att alla som bidragit till platsen har arbetat efter barnkonventionen och sett ett värde i att handla för att förverkliga platsen. / As a reaction to the war in Ukraine, Save the Children local association in Halmstad sought knowledge about how they could meet the needs of the refugees, which resulted in the project Child Friendly Place being started and was the first direct support activity in Halland that was placed outside the refugee shelters. They work according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and strove to create a place where vulnerable children could turn to for security and the opportunity to develop. There is a lack of knowledge about how direct support activities can be established and complement the public sector. The purpose of this master's thesis is to increase understanding of the actions that were important in the realization of the project Child-Friendly Place and to increase understanding of how a direct support activity can be established so that children's rights can be strengthened now and in the future. The question being addressed is how it is that the project Child-friendly place has become a relatively successful project. In order to answer the purpose and question, the study draws inspiration from Grounded Theory and, in combination with qualitative interviews, has collected the interviewees' experiences of the project, which resulted in theories. The coding process resulted in four actions: initiative, collaboration, localization, and noted project that created the business from the ground up. The theoretical frame of reference in the study consists of social action and social ties that are used to create an understanding of how the result answers the purpose of the study. The conclusion is that everyone who contributed to the place has worked according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and saw value in acting to make the place a reality.

Children around the world suffer greatly due to conflicts. One of the most common interventions to support children affected by conflicts are Child Friendly Spaces (CFSs). Implemented within different cultural contexts, CFSs aim to be both culturally sensitive and contribute to gender equality, an interaction that can be complex. Previous research regarding CFSs is limited. As CFSs are commonly used in Humanitarian Action, further knowledge is central.This thesis aims to explore and compare how culture and gender appropriate responses in CFSs guidelines and manuals are expressed in order to gain an increased understanding of how these guidelines handle the interaction between gender norms in different cultures.In this study I discuss six CFSs guidelines and manuals by conducting comparative analysis and applying the Ecological Resilience Framework.The result suggests that culture and gender appropriate responses are central in all guidelines and manuals but emphasized in different ways. The participation of children, families and communities, as well as the adaption of activities, are all strategies aimed at cultural sensitivity. The result also entails that the equal inclusion of all children is a general gender appropriate approach. In addition, I claim that the main intervention, aiming to be both gender and culture appropriate, is separated groups between boys and girls. Finally, I argue that gender and culture may clash due to different perceptions of gender and culture appropriate responses.

<p>Children who have fled to Sweden, without their parents or guardians, have been a controversial subject during the winter of 2002. Their situations on refugeestations and the responsibiliy by community and the state have been discussed. My composition is about these children. The composition is not about the situations of the children - focus is instead on the people who operate with the children; community, state and organisations. I want to find empirical levels which show what the children associate with. I have found three levels that I have called: "A institutional refugee", "To be refugee - a problem which must be solved "and "Child or refugee?". These levels contains different subjects as laws, cultural, living and childhood wich together make a picture about what the "refugeechild" means to those who figure in my composition. I have been inspired by discourse, postcolonialism and nationalism. I want to understand why the term "refugeechild", in my sence has a meaning of a duel between a discourse about"children"and"refugees".</p>

Children who have fled to Sweden, without their parents or guardians, have been a controversial subject during the winter of 2002. Their situations on refugeestations and the responsibiliy by community and the state have been discussed. My composition is about these children. The composition is not about the situations of the children - focus is instead on the people who operate with the children; community, state and organisations. I want to find empirical levels which show what the children associate with. I have found three levels that I have called: "A institutional refugee", "To be refugee - a problem which must be solved "and "Child or refugee?". These levels contains different subjects as laws, cultural, living and childhood wich together make a picture about what the "refugeechild" means to those who figure in my composition. I have been inspired by discourse, postcolonialism and nationalism. I want to understand why the term "refugeechild", in my sence has a meaning of a duel between a discourse about"children"and"refugees".