Seminar: The Orphan Industrial Complex: charitable commodification and its consequences for child protection in Africa

Kristen E. Cheney is Associate Professor of Children and Youth Studies for the International Institute of Social Studies in The Hague. Dr. Cheney’s research deals with children’s survival strategies amidst difficult circumstances and the politics of humanitarian intervention for such children, mainly in Eastern and Southern Africa. Her first book, Pillars of the Nation: Child Citizens and Ugandan National Development (2007), looks broadly at the social intersections of childhood and nationhood in international development, while her new book, Crying for Our Elders: African Orphanhood in the Age of HIV/AIDS (2017, University of Chicago Press) draws on youth participatory ethnographic research with orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) to examine issues of social exclusion, policy, and protection for children affected by HIV/AIDS. Her most recent research examines the impact of the global 'orphan industrial complex' - including orphan tourism, childcare institutions, and intercountry adoption - on child protection in developing countries. She has also led several studies using youth participatory research to explore issues of youth sexual and reproductive health.