Job Description

1. About Praajak

The word Praajak means charioteer, the one who guides and mentors. Praajak began its journey in 1997 with a commitment to securing a better present and future for children and youth living in historically disadvantaged communities, in confined custodial milieus and those who find themselves surviving on their own. It works collectively with children and youth, the communities they live in, government and non- government actors to create a caring and protective environment for them. Drawing from the rights-based approach, the organisation supports vulnerable children and youth in utilising their potential and agency. Praajak believes that adolescent and youth are best positioned to shape a world of empathy, esteem and acceptance and hence works towards developing their agency across programmes.

Collectivisation of young people and creating safe spaces in the community remained a major programming strategy. Additionally, systems strengthening and developing a network of young leaders to actively engage with communities has begun and will remain a strong strategy in the future. Promoting well-being and agency of children, adolescent and youth and adopting a psychosocial approach across our projects remains a benchmark for future programming.

2. Context:

* Project Title: Sankalpa: Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience Building through Local Institutions

* Project Duration: 01st May 2024 to 30th April 2027 (3 years)

* Project Aim: To mainstream child centricity in climate change adaptation and mitigation approaches to protect children from violence, abuse and exploitation induced by climate change, and enhance children’s coping and adaptive capacities to respond to climate induced distresses through institution-based resilience building in the Sundarbans region in India.

* Project objectives: To strengthen the capacity of government schools and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) centres in climate distressed blocks of Sundarbans to safeguard the rights of children, offer psychosocial support and facilitate child centered disaster risk reduction and response.

* To enhance the capacity of children and young parents to address harmful gender norms to identify gendered implications and vulnerabilities exacerbated by climate change and disasters in schools and ICDS centres promoting gender responsive approach to disaster risk reduction and mitigation.

* To enable West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) to undertake policy review and put forward recommendations:

* To prioritise children with disabilities in disaster response planning and mitigation through the development of a Standard Operating Procedure (SoP).

* To integrate climate change adaptation in the school curriculum through the development of a module.

Expected results:

o Strengthened transformative capacity of child cabinets and Kanyashree clubs (girl student leaders’ group) in government schools to act as climate change advocates to respond to climate-induced distresses.

o Improved capacity of schoolteachers and ICDS workers, as agents of change, to safeguard the rights of children and offer psychosocial resilience building support in climate distressed blocks.

o Schools are facilitated to undertake child centric and participatory disaster preparedness and response planning mechanism.

o Children and young people are capacitated to influence the schools and ICDS centres to adopt gender responsive actions in DRR Plans.

o Children and young parents demonstrate skills to respond, seek support and prevent gender based harmful beliefs and practices in their families and communities.

o Guideline for prioritising the needs of children with disabilities in disaster response and planning is developed.

o Child centered climate change adaptation module is adopted in school curriculum.

Project Activities:

o Training sessions with children on climate change adaptation and mitigation, leadership skills and collectivization with children nominated in child cabinet and Kanyashree clubs to champion them as climate change child leaders and organize child-led social action events.

o Training sessions with schoolteachers and ICDS workers on child safeguarding, sports for protection methodology and problem management plus/psychological intervention to provide mental health and psychosocial support to children.

o Trainings on safe referral pathways through EmpowerPlus application to refer vulnerable children who are at risk/victims of trafficking, early marriage and other forms of gender-based violence.

o Formation of Kabaddi groups and holding Kabaddi Sessions and reflection circles.

o Home visits and meetings with family members of vulnerable children referred by local institutions.

o Conducting disaster response drills and simulation sessions with schoolteachers and students.

Location: South 24 Parganas, Kultali And Gosaba, West Bengal

Eligibility Criteria

Not Specified

Desired Candidate Profile

Graduation - Graduate-Other

Organization Details

• Organization Name:New Alipore Praajak Development Society
• About Organization:At New Alipore Praajak Development Society, we work together with communities, government and non-government actors to provide an enabling and secure environment for vulnerable children and young people in West Bengal, India.
  
  Know more