Implementing the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child: A Standard of Living Adequate for Development. - Review - book review

Adolescence, Summer, 1999

ANDREWS, Arlene Bowers, & KAUFMAN, Natalie Hevener (Eds.). Wesport, CT: Praeger, 1999. 280pp. $65.00 (h).

The human right to survive and develop, a fundamental premise of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, can be attained only if adequate living conditions are secured for the child. This book reviews the significance of the physical, mental, spiritual, moral, and social aspects of holistic child development called for by Article 27 of the Convention. The editors share a vision of childhood wherein the child is accorded dignity, and opportunities exist to promote advancement of human potential. Contributors from several nations and a variety of disciplines, including psychology, law, social work, medicine, economics, and international studies, address the challenge of identifying adequate living conditions across cultures and discuss issues affecting communities and governments as they attempt to fulfill their responsibilities to children and their families. Key themes throughout the book are the significance of the child's perspective, the primacy of the family environment, the need to balance the interests of diverse cultures while reducing historical inequities, and the ecological interdependence of children, families, communities, and nations. The editors and contributors call for organized social and political action to realize the child's right to develop, including ways to measure and monitor children's well-being beyond survival. ors are assoc ated with the