Maestral International, together with colleagues from the Changing the Way We Care (CTWWC) initiative, recently participated in the 8th International Conference on Adoption Research (ICAR-8) held at the University of Minnesota. This conference, running from July 8-12, 2024, provided a global platform for discussing critical issues related to children’s care and protection.
The conference opened with a keynote by Philip Goldman, President of Maestral International and member of the CTWWC Steering Committee. His address set the tone for the event, emphasizing the importance of care reform efforts worldwide and highlighting specific examples from CTWWC’s work. The CTWWC team, comprising experts from Guatemala, Kenya, Moldova, and the UK, delivered several key presentations throughout the week.
The Maestral and CTWWC teams led several standout sessions including one by Kelley Bunkers and Sully Santos, who discussed the role of domestic adoption within children’s care, highlighting specific examples from Kenya and Guatemala. Their presentation underscored the successes and challenges faced in these contexts, offering valuable lessons for other low- and middle-income countries. CTWWC colleagues presented family strengthening approaches in Guatemala, Kafaalah practices in Kenya, and initial findings from a pilot foster care service for children with complex disabilities in Moldova. Maestral Senior Associate and CTWWC Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Director, Jo Wakia, presented findings from the Household survey on child well-being and caregiver outcomes post-reunification from residential care.
Key takeaways from the conference included the need for workforce capacity strengthening in adoption and foster care competencies, the critical role of engaging people with lived experiences, and the importance of disability inclusion across research and practice. These insights will be instrumental in shaping future strategies and interventions by Maestral and CTWWC.
Maestral International’s strong presence at ICAR-8 exemplifies their commitment to leading and influencing the global child protection agenda. The insights gained and shared at this conference will undoubtedly drive further progress in integrating domestic adoption into care reform strategies and ensure safe, nurturing family care for children around the world.