The National Post- March 3, 2021
by Erik Leijon
"The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is the new international home of an important pilot project for the future of children’s health.
GlobalChild is a child rights monitoring platform that will allow countries to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), an important treaty that standardizes a number of factors for children and forces governments to uphold those standards so that children can grow up to become healthy, productive members of society. New Brunswick is the first location where GlobalChild will be used.
Dr. Ziba Vaghri, a Canadian researcher behind this international innovation, relocated to New Brunswick this fall, becoming a senior research associate in the department of psychology on UNB’s Saint John campus. Vaghri has been an expert in child health, development and rights for over 20 years, starting as a pediatric nurse. Her research looks at the social determinants of children’s health, such as economic or cultural factors. Her research looks at the social determinants of children’s health, such as economic or cultural factors.
As the home of GlobalChild, the province will play an important role in refining the tool designed to improve the health of children in the province and eventually around the world. Data collected from this pilot in 2021 will help New Brunswick figure out ways to effectively combat child poverty and address childhood developmental vulnerabilities. Collecting and understanding this data is the first step in combating the issues that affect children’s health. This opens the door for data-informed policy and program development. GlobalChild provides a tool to develop a roadmap for achieving better child health.
“There are a host of factors that can affect a child’s health,” said Vaghri. “Some of them are well-established, like family income. But there are lesser-known factors, as well, such as gender equality or mental health in the digital era.”
Vaghri was drawn to UNB because of its Integrated Health Initiative (IHI). Launched in 2020, the program focuses on health education and research with an interdisciplinary, collaborative approach.
“Children are the most vulnerable members of society,” said Dr. Vaghri. “UNICEF estimates an additional 150 million children have fallen into poverty due to the pandemic. This has grave ramifications on child development. The work we’re doing here has become more important than ever.”
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