ICCRP Annual Internship

The International & Canadian Child Rights Partnership (ICCRP) was formed in 2015. Through its prior work on the interconnections of children's rights to participation and protection, the ICCRP identified a critically overlooked element in realizing child rights: intergenerational relationships. The expanded ICCRP is now focusing on this new, innovative research direction to examine how intergenerational relationships can transcend current barriers to implementing children's rights, through intergenerational partnerships, in research, policy, and practice.

The ICCRP includes young people with lived experience, 38 researchers, and 30 partner organizations from universities, NGOs, major human rights institutions, and governments in Canada and in multiple countries across the Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. The current research objectives of the ICCRP are:

1. Expand conceptual models for intergenerational partnerships;
2. Investigate processes for fostering intergenerational partnerships to support child rights, including youth activism;
3. Identify and develop relational practices (intergenerational, decolonial, cross-national, cross-cultural, ethical) that can reform and stimulate research, public policy, and practice to support child rights; and
4. Explore and analyze child rights education environments and how they support or hinder understanding of child rights among children, as well as intergenerational partnerships.

Reporting to Mónica Ruiz-Casares and the ICCRP Project Manager, the successful intern will work closely with other ICCRP research staff to provide virtual support and contribute to the overall goals of the international research partnership. The successful intern will gain knowledge of social science research design, methodologies, and the execution of academic and customized policy research on children rights both in Canada and around the world. The successful intern will assist with the development of ICCRP policy briefs, contribute to the ICCRP website, and support conference preparations. They will assist ICCRP staff members with the partnership’s communication and knowledge dissemination strategy and efforts in line with the Department of Equity, Ethics and Policy’s contributions to the partnership e.g. newsletter, social media, online webinars, etc. The candidate will gain important knowledge of the ethical implications and policy related issues that arise from real-world situations whereby NGOs, governments, and academic institutions involve young people in their human rights efforts. They will also participate in seminars and trainings with other interns in the Department of Equity, Ethics and Policy.

The successful intern’s role will include some or all of the following ICCRP activities (activities will be commensurate with qualifications):

• Research and writing support, including literature reviews and reports;
• Attend the ICCRP Policy Working Group meetings to support dialogue, learning, and research outputs such as webinars, practice notes, and potential publications;
• Support research team long-term projects as needed, including background research and fact-checking, preparing slide decks for presentations, managing documents, and responding to emails
• Data collection and analysis
• Communications (e.g. prepare and present information to others, contribute to knowledge mobilization efforts)
• Networking and collaborations
• Outreach activities
• Report writing/editing
• Activities that provide international experience
• Interdisciplinary local, national, and international engagement with children’s rights stakeholders as required

Successful applicants will meet the following criteria:

• Graduate student at McGill University in the Winter 2024 semester;
• Demonstrated knowledge of child rights and child and youth participation;
• Ability to co-create and support research with human subjects, which necessarily involves the capacity to build strong interpersonal relationships with young people and adults alike;
• Excellent communication skills: written, verbal and non-verbal;
• Capacity to critically analyze and problem solve;
• Strong administrative, time management and organizational skills;
• Capacity and willingness to work remotely (computer literate);
• Advanced knowledge of MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and GSuite (Docs, Sheets, Drive and Gmail);
• Strong qualitative data analysis skills;
• Strong research and writing capabilities;
• Adaptable, able to work independently and with a team, and able to work in fast-paced environment;
• Experience working or studying in Social Policy, Childhood Studies, Social Work, Equity Studies, International Development Studies, Sociology (or related discipline) an asset;
• NGO, consulting, government, or education experience an asset;
• Experience in conducting research or change management projects in academic and/or industry settings an asset;
• Priority will be given to those with previous experience engaging children and youth people in research