Street Kids International
| Charity | |
| Founded | 1988 |
| Headquarters | Canada / UK |
| Website | www.streetkids.org |
Street Kids International (or Street Kids) is a Canadian-based non-governmental organization founded by Peter Dalglish, Chris Lowry and Frank O'Dea in 1988. The organization focuses on providing street youth with the opportunity to lead safer and better lives through three main programme avenues: street health, street work and street rights. In 2008, Street Kids International expanded its operations to the United Kingdom with Street Kids International UK.
Street Kids International was born out of the Second Sudanese War that began in 1983. In the mid 1980s, Peter Dalglish worked in Sudan as a field worker for the United Nations. While in Sudan, Peter organized the first technical training school for street children in the country. The vocational school trained street youth to become apprentice mechanics, welders and electricians.
1988 marked the birth of Street Kids International as a registered charity in Canada and in the following year, the organization premiered the animation Karate Kids. The film, which later won the Peter F. Drucker Award for Non-Profit Innovation in 1993, addresses health related issues faced by street youth.
Following Karate Kids, Street Kids International developed a second animation entitled Goldtooth. Again, Street Kids International’s work was recognized when it won the UNICEF Prize at the 1996 Ottawa International Film Festival. Both films were directed by Derek Lamb, an Academy Award-winning animation filmmaker and producer, and co-produced by Chris Lowry (www.ecotone.ca).
In 2001, the organization premiered its latest animation entitled Speed’s Choice. In a shift away from health-related issues, the animation addresses the subject of street entrepreneurship. According to the Street Kids International website, the film is a component of their Street Work programme. Since 2001, Street Kids International has undertaken various initiatives in Canada and internationally, and in 2007, the organization was recognized by CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) for their Long-Term Commitment to International Cooperation.
In January 2015, Save the Children and Street Kids International announced that they will become one to help more children and youth tackle the cycle of poverty by building sustainable income-generating opportunities.
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