WEBVTT 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Good Morning 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Worldwide, over 1.5 Billion People experience some conflict 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 In response, people are forced to flee their country. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 leaving over 15 million refugees. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 children without a doubt are 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 the most innocent and vulnerable victims 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 but not just from the obvious physical dangers, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 but from, the often, unspoken affects that wars have on their families. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 The experiences of war leave children at real high risk 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 for the development of emotional and behavioural problems. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 children as we can only imagine, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 will feel worried, threaten and at risk. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 but there is good news. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 The Quality of care that children recieve 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 in their families, can have a more significant 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 effects on their well-being, than from 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 the actual experiences of war that they have been exposed to. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So actually, children can be protected 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 by warm, secure parenting. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 during and after conflict. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 In 2011 I was a first year PHD Student 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 in the University Of Manchester 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 School Of Physiological Sciences. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Like many of you here, I watched the crisis in Syria 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 unfold in front of me on the Tv. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 My family are originally from Syria, and very early on 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I lost several family members in really horrifying ways. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I sit and I gathered with my family to watch the Tv. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So we have all seen those scenes, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 barns destroying, buildings, chaos, destruction. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and people screaming and running. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 it was always the people screaming and running 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 that really got me the most. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Specially those terrified looking children. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I was a mother to two young, typically inquisitive children. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 They were five and six then. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 At an age when they typically ask lots and lots of questions 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and expect real convincing answers. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So I began to wonder what it might be like 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 to parent my children in a war-zone and a refugee camp. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Would my children change? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Would my daughter's bright happy eyes lose their shine? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 would my sons' really relax care-free nature 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 become fearful and withdrawn? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 How would I cope? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Would I change? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 As psychologists and parent's trainers 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 we know that arming parents 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 with skills and caring for their children 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 can have a huge effect on their well-being. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 We call this Parents Training. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 The questions I had was 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Could Parent Training programs be useful for families 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 while they're still in war-zones or refugee camps? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Could we reach them with advise or training 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 that would help them through the struggles? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So, I approached my PHD supervisor, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 professor Rachel Calam, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 with my idea of using my academic skills 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 to make some changes in the real world. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I wasn't quite sure, exactly, what I wanted to do. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 She listened carefully and patiently, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 And to my joy, she said: 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 "If that is what you want to do, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and it means so much to you, Let's do it. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Let's find ways to see if parent programs can be useful 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 for families in this contexts." 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So for the past five years myself and my colleagues, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 professor Calam and Dr. Kim Cartwright 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 have been working on ways to support families 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 that have experienced war and displacement. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now, to know how to help families that have been 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 through conflict, support their children, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 the first step must obviously be 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 to ask them what are they struggling with. Right? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I mean, it seems obvious, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 but often those are the most vulnerable 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 that we are trying to support that we actually don't ask. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 How many times have we just assumed 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 we know exactly the right thing that is gonna help 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 someone or something without actually asking 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 them first.