Home-based: Consultancy - Development of Multimedia Tools through Child Participation Processes

The ECPAT International Secretariat coordinates the global work of the organisation and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. The Secretariat designs and implements global and regional level programmes, and undertakes programming, advocacy and research and facilitates a range of network initiatives.

Background of the Project: 

The ECPAT Secretariat is committed to ensuring rights-based and meaningful participation of children in matters that directly affect them. Tourism brings development opportunities but also brings imbalance of power between travellers and impoverished local communities. With communities financially struggling due to the Covid crisis, the environment has become conducive for both domestic and foreign child sex offenders to access victims more easily, online and offline. Children’s perspectives on protection against violence are critical to create more effective and relevant programs. However, interventions often remain by-and-large adult driven or –led, and strategies are developed to address the issue for children, and not with children.

The project will engage with groups of children in Costa Rica and in Ecuador to support them in their analysis to generate ideas and recommendations on how initiatives, tools and materials can be designed with better engagement of children to ensure tourism is safe, sustainable and protect children from sexual exploitation.

Consultancy Objectives: 

We are looking for an individual or an agency with expertise and experience in co-creating multimedia content with children and young people to document and showcase their processes of participation and activism. This will entail training and supporting children in creating their multimedia tools to document their engagement in the project, and producing the final digital products, i.e. 3 videos (1 per country, and 1 global) based on the multimedia products developed by children and additional footages as needed, showcasing the process of engaging children in assessing and informing sustainable tourism strategies and providing recommendations for future developments.

This will imply: 

1. To propose a methodology that can be fully mainstreamed and integrated into the participatory processes being developed to engage the groups of children in Costa Rica and Ecuador
2. To ensure the documentation process through digital media creation is safe, ethical, and realistic within the given contexts, resources and constraints
3. To create a toolkit for adults working with children to develop children’s capacities and skills to produce their multimedia documentation process and campaigns for preventing and addressing sexual exploitation of children. This may imply adapting existing methodologies such as photovoice, digital story telling or developing new tools as needed and appropriate.
4. To create a resource pack for children to use as support and reference when developing their multi-media documentation process
5. To deliver the capacity development activities, online, to adult CSO partners in Costa Rica and Ecuador and mentoring them while engaging with children
6. To coordinate with the ECPAT members and others to ensure regular check-in on progress on the activities, timely and adequate documentation process and smooth integration of the multimedia creation components in the participatory methodologies
7. To create 3 videos at the end of the project (final version no later than end of September), 1 for each country and 1 global, that will present the participatory work with children, their learnings, reflections and recommendations to advocate for more systematic engagement with children in the development of strategies to protect children from sexual exploitation in travel and tourism.

Expected Outputs: 

1. A methodology for engaging children in documenting their engagement and advocacy work through multi-media
2. A toolkit for CSOs on accompanying and supporting children in creating their multi-media products to advocate for their rights
3. A capacity development programme for CSO’s to strengthen children’s multi-media advocacy capacities, including through the introduction and use of the toolkit
4. A resource pack for children to create their multi-media advocacy products
5. Three videos, one for Costa Rica, one for Ecuador and one global to showcase the engagement of children and their reflections and recommendations

Timetable: 

The assignment is estimated at around 20 working days and will be carried out between March and Mid-October 2023. A detailed plan and timeline will be defined and agreed with the Consultant at the start of the assignment.

Consultant Profile: 

• Demonstrated experiences in leading co-creation processes with children to advocate for their rights using multi-media tools, including and in particular digital tools.
• Previous experiences of developing toolkits for children on digital and multimedia creation
• Capacities to train and strengthen skills of diverse groups, from adult CSOs to children, in particular online
• Experience on working with children on sexual violence would be desirable
• Good understanding of the ethical considerations and safeguarding concerns in engaging with children in advocacy around sensitive issues like child sexual exploitation, particularly when using digital media
• Experience in video creation – to be demonstrated
• Ability to operate in a multicultural, multilingual distance environment
• Excellent English oral and writing skills, ability to operate in Spanish is a minimum

Additional Information: 

• This is a home-based position using own equipment and communication tools of the consultant.
• The consultant should be available for online calls including with different time zones (GMT+7 and GMT-6).
• The project will be delivered in Spanish and English. The Consultant needs to be able to operate in Spanish.
• The Consultant is expected to act at all times in a manner consistent with the values of ECPAT International and in compliance with the organisation’s policies and procedures including Child Safeguarding Policy and the Code of Conduct.

How to Apply: 

Expression of interest: please send CV and short cover email, including a brief proposition of your approach and financial proposal (with daily fee) to vacancy@ecpat.org

Mention in the subject header: Your name and “Multimedia”

Deadline: 5 March 2023

ECPAT International is committed to keeping children safe. The selection process reflects our commitment to the safeguarding of children.