Publications and Resources
iACT uses our learning and experience to assist people affected by the refugee crisis and shape humanitarian policy and practice. Browse our publications and resources.
Integrating Mindfulness, an iACT program overview
To address and support the emotional health and well-being of refugee and displaced communities – and to help individuals learn how to cope with stress, build resilience, and restore hope – iACT integrates mindfulness training and curricula into each of our programs. Put simply, mindfulness is paying attention, on purpose and without judgment, in the present moment. The practice of mindfulness helps us to be aware of our thoughts, feelings, and sensations as they arise, and to notice what we are feeling and thinking, without judgment. Mindfulness develops life skills to help us respond and relate to what’s going on around us, with wisdom and compassion.
From little ripples to big waves: comprehensive early childhood programming for young refugee children
Levels of displacement are the highest on record: as of February 2019, 68.5 million people worldwide have been forcibly displaced, of whom 25.4 million hold refugee status – over half of them under the age of 18 (UNHCR, online). An estimated 87 million children under age 7 have spent their entire lives in conflict zones (Inter- agency Network for Education in Emergencies, 2018). Yet humanitarian funding for education – and, especially, early childhood programming – remains alarmingly low. iACT developed the Little Ripples programme to address the needs of young children affected by humanitarian emergencies and forgotten crises.
Little Ripples in Tanzania
While the influx of Burundian refugees into Tanzania slowed significantly in early 2018, a large school-age population (145,052) existed across the camps. Though a structured education system operated in the camps, a high number of refugee children (44%) remained out of school in early 2018. During this period, there was a critical lack of services and an accumulation of risk particularly for refugee children ages three to five. The number of child-friendly spaces and pre-primary classrooms across the camps was insufficient to accommodate all young learners and many learning spaces were located far from newer camp zones, making the walking distance too great for young children. Additionally, there was a lack of value placed on the importance of early childhood care and development (ECCD) by parents and caregivers, resulting in low registration and participation.
A Trauma-Informed Approach to Humanitarian Action
Over the last several decades, our understanding of trauma—how our body is impacted by trauma, and how we might provide people with resources and tools to bring themselves back into the present moment and live a fulfilling life—has substantially evolved.
Little Ripples: Community-based refugee-led preschool in Chad
Little Ripples not only delivers preschool in home-based settings in the community, but also employs refugee women to manage in-home preschools and improve the social-emotional, cognitive, and physical development of refugee children.
Early Childhood Development and Early Learning for Children in Crisis and Conflict
This background paper was commissioned as background information to assist in drafting the 2019 GEM Report, Migration, displacement, and education: Building bridges, not walls.
Migration, displacement & education: Building bridges, not walls
The 2019 GEM Report continues its assessment of progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) on education and its ten targets, as well as other related education targets in the SDG agenda.
Brief: ECD and Early Learning for Children in Crisis and Conflict
This background paper was commissioned as background information to assist in drafting the 2019 GEM Report, Migration, displacement, and education: Building bridges, not walls.
Children’s Rights and ACEI’s Love Me, Teach Me Campaign
The aim of these briefs is to raise educators’ awareness of children’s rights as they relate to the four cornerstones of ACEI’s Love Me, Teach Me campaign.
Cultivating a Culture of Peace and Empathy in Young Children While Empowering Refugee Communities
Meeting the needs of children in refugee communities is a growing concern. Supporting their physical and emotional well-being is a challenge, as is protecting their right to quality education. Innovations are necessary to meet these challenges. Given the circumstances that have contributed to refugee crises around the world, education innovations that promote a culture of peace and empathy are particularly important.