This is who we are

CRIN is a creative human rights organisation focused on children's rights. We challenge the status quo because the norms that dictate children and young people’s place in society need radical change. We press for rights – not charity – and campaign for a genuine shift in how governments and societies view and treat under-18s. Using research, policy, art and advocacy to communicate our vision for the future, we encourage people to think critically about the world.

These are our principles

Our core strength lies in our values and principles, which have always guided the work we do. The following Code now sets these out explicitly, describing our vision for a rights-respecting world, how we intend to get there, and what our role will be, in the hope that others will collaborate or even take inspiration and start their own rebellion.

Part I - We have a mission

We are Earth’s custodians, not its owners

It goes without saying that humans cannot live and have rights if there is no planet to live on. Ensuring this does not happen is therefore a fundamental precondition to human rights, including children’s. Every human has the right to a clean and healthy environment, but the planet is not ours to own or do with it as we wish; it is our responsibility to act as custodians and preserve the planet so that generations of people to come can enjoy it too. This should make us ask hard questions about how we live and what needs to change in terms of our impact on the environment, but also the issues we tackle. See our climate justice strategy.

Rights, not charity

We promote rights, not charity, for children. Human rights and freedoms cannot be donated or gifted through expressions of charity; they are not the subject of goodwill. Yet this is the daily mistaken response to human rights violations against children. Charity, however, does nothing but evoke a sense of pity without tackling the problems children face. For these reasons, we fight the causes, not the symptoms, of rights violations against children. We seek long term solutions, not quick fixes. Children are independent rights holders, not passive objects of charity.

Children’s rights, human rights

Children are human, humans have rights, therefore children have human rights. While it’s true that children possess unique protection-based rights because of the particular vulnerabilities they have on account of their young age, they also hold universal human rights which apply to all humans everywhere. The right to free speech, to privacy, to health, and to freedom of religion and belief, for example, do not apply to particular age groups, but to the rights of humans. We must therefore recognise and uphold the full range of children’s human rights. 

Justice, not compromise

Human rights are not goals, targets or promises, but obligations, and there must always be a way to enforce them. In this sense, access to justice is pivotal. Not only is it a human right in itself, but it also makes other human rights a reality, otherwise rights would be nothing more than promises on paper. All humans must be able to use and trust the legal system to protect their rights through quick, effective and fair responses to violations. Anything less is inadequate. The importance of access to justice applies equally to children and adults, yet children’s rights in this area have long been neglected and ignored.

Accountability, not immunity

Everyone working in human rights should be held accountable for their actions — or inactions. We are not untouchable and do not sit on a moral pedestal just because of the work we do. A lack of transparency, cover-ups, a failure to act or apologies issued only when found out all signal an intention to evade one’s obligations to children and place the needs of an institution above those of the rights holders. The expectation to be transparent, take meaningful action and be held accountable applies across the board from States and international institutions to organisations like ours and funders alike.

Diversity, not homogeny

Change for the better does not happen without diverse groups of people coming together. Being closed to different perspectives, ideas, ways of working and people only serves to protect the status quo of what organisations like ours work on, how we do things and what we look like. Bringing people together for the common goal should not only involve the like-minded and those we already know, but crucially those we have never met nor worked with. This relates to both our partners and our colleagues, as working with a range of people from a variety of backgrounds, identities and experiences is how we expose ourselves to a diversity of experiences, perspectives and approaches. This then helps to push organisations like ours out of our homogenous comfort zones. 

Part II - We have conviction

Principles, not pragmatism

We will stand by our principles and not cave in to pragmatism. We will speak out even if the majority remains silent. At times this may mean being a lone voice striving to break taboos, but this is our role and we will not shy away from the things that need to be challenged. We understand that compromise and incremental progress may at times be the only way forward, but we will not settle. To this end, we will reclaim radicalism; there was a time when every idea that seems perfectly normal today was once wildly radical too.

Critical thinking, not compliance

Just because something happens every day, does not mean it is not awful and that it cannot change. We must always question the world we live in and the norms and assumptions we live by, with critical thinking as the driving force. This is simply about asking questions and not feeling you have to conform. In a world rich with a diversity of information, we have the resources to achieve this. This same world is flooded with misinformation, however, so sticking to thinking critically is an urgent requirement for all of us.

Intersectionality, not oppression  

The realisation of children's rights is held back not just by discrimination against under-18s because of their young[er] age, but by all kinds of structural oppression. To support the advancement of human rights for children and youth, we must then challenge all power structures that benefit the few and serve to reinforce one another - such as patriarchy, racism, ageism, ableism, capitalism and white privilege - and build an all-inclusive system that gives everyone an equal stake and footing. Understanding how inequalities manifest and intersect in children’s lives is key to dismantling the dynamics and structures that hold oppression in place.

If you can’t imagine it, you can’t achieve it

If we cannot imagine the world we are claiming to fight for, we will never get there. In a constantly changing world, we need to be creative and adaptive if we are to be effective. While we can be skeptical, it does not have to mean that we let pragmatism kill ideas and imagination. All change begins with an idea. History is full of examples of small groups of people who came together because they had an idea that then changed the world. You just have to find it, explore it and share it.

Promote children’s rights, not ourselves

The ultimate goal of all our work is to secure the fulfilment of all children's rights. This means we constantly strive to work ourselves out of existence, not to prolong it unnecessarily. There is no limit to what we can achieve if we ground our existence in our objectives, not our survival. We do not choose the issues we work on based on how they make us look, but on what needs to change. And the measure of our success is the change itself, not how often we get our name in print or are credited for our achievements.

Invest in failure, not quick wins

Organisations like ours have become unable to openly recognise and discuss our own failures. It can be the result of wanting to keep up appearances in front of donors or among the real or perceived competition for attention among organisations in our sector. But this is slowing us down. Failures are there to learn from, not to conceal. In fact, we can learn more from of our failures than the successes we choose to parade. And the strength of learning is doubled when we can openly learn from one another. We ourselves are not there just yet, but we will strive to openly describe the mistakes we make in the hope that others will do the same and we can all learn from one another.

Part III - We have the means

Advocate in language, not words

We believe in the power of language. We promote the use of plain language so everyone can access the information they need about children’s rights. We also use artwork over photographs of children as a conscious move away from images that merely evoke pity and inspire charity. We do our best to avoid using jargon and will continue to poke fun at our sector when it does. But we will also call out those who misuse the language of rights to justify violating certain people’s rights.

Don’t grow; network

We are small but we have big dreams. We believe that the notion of relentlessly pursuing growth can lead to stalled progress and reduced autonomy. Plus, we do not want to grow; we want to network better. Small means agile, flexible, lean and daring; it means we can change and adapt to new circumstances and environments when needed, and continue to fiercely maintain our independence and stick by our principles. It’s about quality, not quantity.

Stronger together, not apart

We believe that making human rights a reality for children and adults alike is a collective responsibility we all share, not something to be confined to non-profits. Everything we do happens because groups of people come together in support of an idea. And history shows us it is harder to ignore a big group than a single voice. But it is imperative that that voice is inclusive of those whose rights we defend. To this end, we aim to not only to involve children and young people more systematically in our work, but also continue to push for systemic reform of the laws - and mentalities - that deny children the chance to speak up and represent themselves in their own words.

Be open, not proprietary

Our work is modelled on the open source movement which, despite beginning life as a technical term to describe open access to software source code, now describes a movement dedicated to open participation and sharing. We also share the process behind how we do our work. This ranges from creating toolkits so that others can replicate or build on what we do, to publishing our behind-the-scenes thinking in order to open the floor to conversations beyond just ourselves and invite people in from the start. 

Act ethically, don’t just think it

While we believe in misbehaving and challenging the status quo, we are deeply committed to working ethically. This is about how we run our own organisation: from adopting and regularly reviewing workplace policies, decision making, flexible working for staff, to non discrimination and how to respond when a problem occurs. It is also about acting ethically beyond our organisation, which is why the partners, companies, banks, donors and service providers we engage with must share our values. 

Safeguard children, not the organisation

Our commitment to children’s rights means that we have a commitment to safeguard children, especially those we collaborate with. Consequently, we demand that our staff and representatives, including Board Members, apply the highest standards of behaviour towards children both within their professional and private lives. And we expect all of our partners to adopt similar safeguarding policies. For all of us, safeguarding children is not just a tick-box exercise, but an obligation. It is children who come first at all costs, not the organisation.