Standing up for children

This week I had the honour of being asked to address the 8th International Korczak Conference in Warsaw, jointly hosted this year by the Polish Children's Ombudsman. 

Janusz Korczak was a paediatrician who ran a number of orphanages on democratic principles in Warsaw during the inter-war period, and is regarded as a pioneer of children's rights. There was a children's newspaper, a children's parliament and children's courts. In 1942 the children of his Jewish orphanage were transported to Treblinka as part of the 'final solution', and he insisted on going with them.

The goody bag is a feature of academic conferences, varying from sparse to liberal. This was extravagant.