Human resilience is, above all, a reality we can observe: life paths that surprise us in a good way. Some testimonies are even very famous, such as the diary of Anne Frank or Nelson Mandela’s biography.
We can define resilience as the capacity of a human being or a group to overcome adversities and grow in life. Beyond resistance, it is the capacity to rebuild life and sometimes even transform a tragedy into something positive.
We can contribute in many ways to developing resilience. In order to do that, we need to ask ourselves why some children have been able to succeed so well in their life in spite of difficulties. In each case, the answer to this question is different.
Through its different field programs and actions, BICE tries to deepen resilience in children by developing an interaction between the child and his environment.
The resilience phenomenon is never absolute; it is a process with ups and downs that lasts a lifetime. It needs to be encouraged, always with the local cultural context in mind. Resilience can inspire and sometimes give directions to public policies regarding the protection of children and suggest another look on intervention techniques.
Extracts of BICE publications: « Growth in the Muddle of life Resilience: Building on people’s strengths » et « Rights of the Child and the Resilience (Droits de l’enfant et Résilience) », written by Stefan VANISTENDAEL, Research and Development specialist within BICE.
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