Iceland review - 2014, Qupperneq 57

ICELAND REVIEW 55
This year marks the tenth anniver-
sary of uNICEF Iceland, a branch
of the international organization
that for 70 years has provided children
worldwide with food, shelter, education
and security. It is unique as the only orga-
nization mentioned in the Convention on
the Rights of the Child. Although a part
of the united Nations, uNICEF depends
entirely on contributions, the vast major-
ity of which come from the public and the
rest from corporations and charities. Stefán
Ingi Stefánsson is the director of uNICEF
Iceland. In fact, he’s the charity’s first
employee and founding member. With his
dedicated team of staff and volunteers, his
enthusiasm continues to inspire the nation.
As a result, uNICEF Iceland has—for the
second year in a row—the highest num-
ber of monthly supporters/donors, Global
Parents per capita.
Ásta andrésdóttir: Ten percent of the
population have joined you in only 10
years of operation. That’s a remarkable
accomplishment.
stefán ingi stefánsson: We take great
pride in the fact that 23,000 Icelanders
of all ages and from all walks of life are
uNICEF Global Parents, which means
that each month they contribute a chosen
amount. This is a higher ratio than any-
where else in the world; we are closely
followed by uruguay and the Netherlands.
Not only do these contributions go to great
causes all over the world, this is also signifi-
cant on a moral level, a declaration by the
nation that children’s rights are important
and that it is ready to commit to the issue.
This is the second year in a row that we
are number one, and have been in steady
growth since our founding, ten years ago.
Áa: How would you explain this?
sis: I believe this is a manifestation of how
strongly we feel about children’s rights
and their birthright: to grow into healthy,
sis: The fundraising is the heart of the
operation, but now that it has gained
momentum we are able to focus on other
aspects of our mission: advocating for the
rights of Icelandic children. Last year, we
published a report about different kinds
of violence against children in Iceland—
sexual abuse, domestic abuse, negligence
and bullying—asking the simple question:
“What can we do to decrease violence?”
We got experts from every field we could
think of; everyone was happy to participate.
We also consulted children who had suf-
fered violence and have analyzed already
existing data and used that to determine the
nature and volume of the violence.
Áa: What were some of the report’s most
important findings?
sis: One of the report’s findings was that
children are in most cases sexually abused
by their peers or older children. That is
very important information to have. There
are evidently a lot of gray areas and chil-
dren need to be better educated about the
rights and wrongs of this matter.
Áa: Has the report already made a differ-
ence in Icelandic children’s lives?
sis: We presented the government with 16
clear suggestions for solutions and already
a lot has been done. For example, the
operations of the Children’s House have
been expanded. Also, the government has
increased its contributions to the field
following our direct suggestion. In March
2013, the children met with the then Prime
Minister Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, as well as
the secretary of the interior and the minis-
ters of welfare and education. Jóhanna later
described it as the most influential meet-
ing of her 30-year political career. Among
the first orders of business for the current
Minister of Welfare was meeting with the
group. We are so pleased to see that the
will to fight for child protection crosses
political lines.
Via UNICEF Iceland, ten percent of the population supports underprivileged
children of the world, proving that even a tiny country can make a huge difference.
Ásta Andrésdóttir met with the organization’s director, Stefán Ingi Stefánsson.
well-adjusted adults. We want this for all
the world’s children, not just our own. The
Global Parent project is people’s way to get
involved.
Áa: Did the 2008 collapse of the Icelandic
financial system put a dent in the fund-
raising?
sis: Not at all. Although contributions
from corporations diminished over the
months immediately following the collapse,
the public remained with us and that’s the
biggest part anyway. We held off on all
campaigns as other things were going on
in society. But when we started again, a few
months later, everybody was ready to give.
Looking back on it now, this is actually
quite interesting.
Áa: Perhaps people’s values change after
such a crash?
SIS: The director of uNICEF Finland,
who experienced the country’s 1990 finan-
cial crisis, told us that in dire times people
go for walks, to the theater and give to
charity. I don’t know about the first two
but the charity bit is definitely accurate.
But of course, thinking about the value of
the contributions paints a different picture.
The u.S. dollar lost a lot of its value, which
decreased our budget.
Áa: How did UNICEF Iceland come
about?
sis: The organization has lovely roots
back to 1948 when an association of female
students began selling uNICEF Christmas
cards. In 2003, a group of people, includ-
ing myself, started looking into opening an
Icelandic National Committee. The idea
was immediately well received and so we
opened in March 2004 and began raising
funds in May. This year, we hope to raise
ISK 500 million (uSD 4.5 million).
Áa: How exactly does UNICEF Iceland
operate?