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After more than a decade of coping with transition challenges in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the need for the reform of family and child welfare systems has been widely acknowledged. Through Changing minds, policies and lives, UNICEF and the World Bank have teamed up in an effort to developing knowledge and tools for the reform of three essential family welfare system regulators (decision making, standards and financing). This publication provides guidelines for redirecting monetary resources by changing financing flows primarily towards support for families at risk and family-based alternatives. This toolkit is part of a three set collection, the other two focus on standards to ensure family-centered outcomes, and decision making processes to reshape the gate-keeping system

This book describes the approach of COMPAS, a network of partners that supports 'development from within', based on local knowledge and practices. The body of the book consists of case studies which illustrate how development can be based on locally available resources, knowledge, values and leadership institutions; how there can be genuinely local determination of development options; and how the benefits of development within local areas and communities can be fostered

This paper is about a Sri Lankan disabled women's organisation, founded by a disabled woman, to empower women through a support network that allows them to exercise their rights and gain access to services, skills training and self-employment. In Sri Lanka, women with disabilities have few opportunities for economic independence and most are confined to their homes, protected by their families from a society that stigmatises them, particularly in rural areas

The report aims to provide an overview of practical technology solutions for rural providers and to help them get started. It assists readers in understanding technology and provides case examples of technology solutions. It raises practical issues in getting started and provides a list of other resources on the subject. The report is geared to a US-based audience and does not specifically cover developing country issues

Rural households are managing as best they can in a rapidly changing and often threatening world which makes them vulnerable to the risk of HIV infection and ill equipped to cope with the effects of AIDS. Their chances of managing can be improved if they function in a supportive environment. However, in many cases this supportive environment does not exist and communities have to build their own resilience if they are to prove effective allies for rural households. Despite the difficulties of such a task, as shown in this paper, it is feasible. Certain conditions have to be met and pitfalls avoided in order to set up processes leading to sustainability and benefit all households as stakeholders. Such awareness is important for the communities themselves, but also for those providing outside assistance in order to trigger the building of community resilience and sustainability for all households, including in HIV/AIDS prevention and mitigation. This paper also reviews from a South East Asian perspective some of the lessons to be drawn from the global and African experiences and highlights some of the specificities and challenges of the region

This publication distills what is known about environmental health during an emergency or disaster. It is intended for practitioners as well as for policy makers and researchers, and covers both general and tecnical aspects of environmental health. Part 1 presents a conceptual framework for understanding environmental health issues in the context of disaster management. Part 2 pulls togetther a series of best pratices and stategies for risk reduction in a number of fields