About Us

Media Collective for Child Rights

Journalists for social change and advocacy for SDG

Established in 2013, MCCR harness the power of information, education and communications to achieve desired social change. Based on strong research footing, its initiatives and campaigns are aimed towards creating viable and accessible platforms to directly engage people, groups and communities across the country and beyond in positive social action. The foundation aggressively initiates, promotes and supports projects that aim towards inducing positive behavioral and social change by engaging key stakeholders, establishing conducive environment and disseminating appropriate and constructive information. It proactively works to stimulate informed decision making, and empower the marginalised and weaker sections through the medium of research, education and training. The foundation believes in nurturing the traditional wisdom of communities but at the same time supports innovations in the field of communications and learning to provide a higher quality of life. MCCR is a registered body under the Indian Trust Act. The trust works pan India.

In 2013, UNICEF facilitated the formation of Media Collective for Child Rights (MCCR) Trust for media advocacy for Routine Immunization in Bastar region. The collective has been actively building capacities of journalists/ reporters across the state towards child friendly reporting. It aims to harness the power of information, education, and communications to achieve desired social change. Based on strong research footing, its initiatives and campaigns are aimed towards creating viable and accessible platforms to directly engage people, groups, and communities across the country and beyond in positive social action. Today its an informal collective of more than 750 journalists, reporters, stringers, academicians, and civil society members to synergize efforts to advance the cause of child rights across all districts in the state.

The objective of the MCCR is to enhance media awareness and understanding of child rights and encourage ownership and action for the protection and promotion of children rights in the state

MCCR Trust has expertise in working on issues related to community mobilization on development issues, environment, Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH), public health, children welfare, education, Skill development, socio-cultural development etc. MCCR Trust programs are designed to better the lives of underserved communities through education, health & nutrition, and skill building, whilst preparing them to be resilient in the face of emergency situations and existential crisis.

Our programs are tailored to address the most pressing needs of the community. We collaborate with the local, state, and national government agencies to further our reach and our endeavor. While implementing the programs, the team not only ensures high quality work but also consistent care towards the local community, coordinating, implementing and managing various activities, like mass campaigns, trainings, field visits, media and other conferences, media advocacy, research and data analysis, conducting all level of activities in tribal dominant areas, volunteers training, mobilization of participants, logistics, all levels of branding and also mobilization of various resource persons pan India as per the need.

Participants are motivated through

Fellowships - Journalists are selected for research stories on trivial issues and are awarded with cash amount to cover their expenses

Media for Children awards - For writing exceptional stories on issues, awards are given yearly

Yearly Boot Camp is organized where journalists and editors meet each other for brainstorming and new techniques, followed by various issues prevalent in their local regions and their solutions.

Areas of specialisation:

MCCR has expertise in working on issues related to children welfare, education, environment, water, Sanitation & Hygiene(WASH), public health, socio-cultural development etc. MCCR programs are designed to better the lives of underserved communities through education, health & nutrition, and skill building, whilst preparing them to be resilient in the face of emergency situations and existential crisis. Our programmes are tailored to address the most pressing needs of the community. We collaborate with the local, state, and national government agencies to further our reach and our endeavour. While implementing the programs, the team not only ensures high quality work but also consistent care towards the local community.

Key programme and activitiesof MCCR

Building community networks for development: MCCR works closely with various social groups e.g tribal and spiritual leaders, media, elected representatives, PRIs to solicit their support in driving positive socialchange.

Research and Documentation: MCCR carries out large-scale social research projects through its team of qualified researchers. In addition, documentation in the form of videos, documentaries as well as reports, is one of our core areas.

School Infrastructure Development: It is based on our Child Friendly Schools approach, developed by UNICEF, and puts the child at the center of a holistic learning and teaching environment. The transformation of the school is also mapped on different standards designed to ensure increasing levels of comfort and efficient functioning of the school.

Community Health: Our team train people on sanitation, hygiene and the benefits of hand washing. Other than this, we conduct medical camps invillages giving services like ACN/PNC, Eyecheckup, Gynecological, FamilyPlanning, General Health checkup.

VillageDevelopmentProjects: This includes developing infrastructure projects for the welfare of villagers including building primary healthcentres, communitycentres, ponds, revamping anganwadi centres, establishing digital resource centres, community libraries etc.

Low-cost Libraries in schools: The Trust provides schools with the resources needed to create a child-friendlylearning space; enlist the local community to co-invest to ensure long-term sustainability of the new libraries; and offer trainings to educators on how to set up and manage school libraries and use the space to foster a habit of reading. After the libraries have been established, we will provide on going monitoring and support.

Awareness using films and outreach activities: The Trust has been using films as a popular medium to create awareness on various social and environmental issues. Thematic films festivals on children issues, environment & wildlife, and gender issues have been organised by the foundation in several states.

Skilldevelopment: Education and skill development in local communities is critical for the development of the nation. We focus on promoting education including special education and employment enhancing vocational skills especially among girls, youth children, women, elderly and the differently abled.

MCCR Trust activities in Chhattisgarh

The Trust has been working in Chhattisgarh from 2013 -2014 onwards. We have worked on a range of issuesincluding Immunization, child rights, Measles Rubella Campaign, promoting COVID appropriate behaviour in the community etc.We have worked in almost all the districts of Chhattisgarh.

Key Projects done by MCCR inChhattisgarh

Formation of State Level Media Collective for ChildRights(MCCR)with UNICEF

It was formally inaugurated on June 7, 2017 in Raipur. It was attended by senior editors, journalists from districts and blocks, civil society representatives, and MCCR Core group members, representatives of Pt. Ravishankar University and UNICFE State Office team. Mr. Anil Pusadkar,President, Chhattisgarh Press Club and Mr. Prasanta Dash, Chief, Field Office jointly innaugurated MCCR by unveiling its logo. The inaugural ceremony was followed by an introductory session on child rights. This interactive session was conducted by Mr.Julian Boyle.

• Composition of the MediaCollective
• Working journalists(block and village level)
• Senior Editors(Print and electronic) from Chhattisgarh
• Academicians and Communication experts
• Child Right experts
• Representatives of state government
• UNICEF officials

CORE GROUP: A Board having representatives from the above mentioned areas has been constituted to make a detailed plan for the functioning of the Collective.

IMPLEMENTINGAGENCY: MCCRT is the nodalagency to execute and coordinate the activitiesnof the Media Collective,based on there recommendations of the Board. Functions of the MediaCollective

• Aid and advise UNICEF towards promoting ChildRights in the state
• Prepare a Course curriculum for two-day refresher training course for working journalists and massmedia students.
• Prepare programme module for various zonalworkshops
• Board Members to act as resource persons in various training programmes
• Organise various activities in the state on Child Right related issues.

Engagement with Elected Representatives

People’s representatives have the reach, communities’ trust and resources to introduce changes which can be sustained and can deliver quantifiable results. Towards this objective, MCCR Trust developed a sustained engagement with Member sof Legislative Assembly to strengthen state’s response during COVID-19and later. As journalists at the district and block levels work closely with elected representatives at various levels-from PRI leaders to Members of Parliament and state. Legislative Assembly, MCCRmembersplayed asignificant role in advocating child right issues with elected representatives and bringingthemon-board forfurtherconsultation.

Supporting Chhattisgarh Health Deptt in Measles Rubella Campaign

MCCR Trust, in order to support UNICEF in the preparation of MR campaign launch in the state of Chhattisgarh, strengthened the capacities of health officials, sought support and partnership of district media as well as state level editors and engage with religious leaders who are powerful social influencers.

ActivitiesOrganised:

• Twelve Zonal Workshops with for Health Officials (CMHOs,DIOs) and PROs regarding engagement with media on MR and crisis management,
• Three zonal sensitization workshops with journalists to bring them on-board as partners for the success of this campaign
• One state level sensitization workshop and a follow up meeting with Editors and senior journalists.
• One State level engagement with religious heads and Tribal leaders

Outcome

• Capacity building of Health officials on crisis communication and strengthening their relationship with media
• Introduced MR vaccine to media and initiated a dialogue to ensure their positivecontribution in the campaign and got favorable media coverage
• A productive discussion with state editors to provide more space to MR Campaign related news in their publications.
• Successful engagement with religious heads and tribal leaders ensuring their support for the success of MR Campaign.

Work with Faith Leaders and Tribal Heads

MCCR engaged with tribal spiritual chiefs as well as faith leaders only various issuesincluding child rights, immunization, institutional delivery etc.Engagement with local faith/tribal leaders to orient them towards child rights in their respective areas is immemsely important. Given their massive following in rural and tribal communities, these faith/tribal leaders could be instrumental in promoting child rights. The key child protection issues that can be addressed by them include vaccination, malnutrition, child marriage, lack of attendance at school, child labour (includingforcedlabour), sexual abuse and violence towards children.Given their exalted status and capacities, they can be powerful messengers and also encourage action in their respectivecongregations.

MCCR hosted a day-long consultation in Raipur in which thirty faith leaders, tribal heads and traditional healers from interior areas of Bastar participated. They shared how traditionally the community take care of pregnant women and children. During the discussion, with the help of translators, they were briefed how they can help in improving the well-being of pregnant women, children and adolescents in their community. Immunization, institutional delivery, nutrition and safe periods were some of the issues discussed with the participants.

In another day-long consultation, thirty-five faith leaders, tribal heads and traditional healers from interior areas ofJashpur participated. Honb’leHealth Minister Sh.T.S.Singh Deo also briefly interacted with the participants.

WorkduringCOVID-19:RokoTokoCampaigninChhattisgarh

Roko Toko campaign was started in the month of May 2021 and was launched in 8 districts ofChhattisgarh. Aim of the campaign was to improve the COVID-19 appropriate behaviour among the communities and stop the spread of the virus.

The campaign was actively rolled outin Durg, Rajnandgaon, Baloda Bazaar, Bilaspur, Raigarh,Kondagaon, and Surajpur districts. Ambikapur & Narayanpur districts. During the months of May,June and July, volunteers reached out to a total of13,56,000 community members across 8districts.

Several community leaders, senior mostgovernment officials, faith leaders, women, students,various associations, local NGOs, reputed International NGOs, student leaders, school teachers,college professors, resident welfare associations, representatives of political parties have participated in the campaign proactively. Media extended a very good cooperation by covering the campaign news at different stages of the campaign.

The campaign interventions created a very good visibility in the municipal areas of these districts.Several state, district and town level govt functionaries, political representatives, civil society and community leaders have participated in the campaign. Media houses have covered the campaignactivities, helped several house holds witnessed the campaign activities. District collectors, citypolice commissioners, various other senior level police department officials have participated during the campaign activities.Over 500 volunteers have participated in the campaign.