Think Global, Do Justice

This week we have the privilege of delving deeper into the remarkable life story of Mohamed Emmanuel Nabieu. In his captivating memoir, My Long Journey Back Home, Nabs shares his resilient spirit and unwavering determination to overcome the challenges that marked his childhood and youth. In his second appearance on Think Orphan, Nabs shares more powerful insights. Discover how he is harnessing the strength of his past to forge a path of empowerment, not only for himself but for countless others who have experienced similar adversity. Podcast Sponsors Attachment and Trauma Focused Therapy by Deborah Gray The ATFT course will prepare you to treat attachment, trauma, and loss issues in children; families. The course teaches approaches for prenatal exposure, executive dysfunction, and family maltreatment. Join the Haiti Family Care Network at the Better Together Conference this July! The Better Together conference will provide a dedicated space and time to convene, share, and learn over two and half days in Nashville. Resources and Links from the show My Long Journey Back Home Watch Nabs on TedxUSW Helping Children Worldwide Show Notes What prompted the writing of My Long Journey Back Home (11:20) A loss of family, community, culture, language, identity (12:00) Cultivating resilience and being transformed (13:30) Spreading the message about care reform and importance of families (14:00) Reflecting on diverse childhood experiences (16:50) Growing up with family (17:00) Navigating life on the streets (20:00) Family cannot be replaced (23:00) It is better to grow up in a poor family than a rich orphanage (26:00) The abuse in institutions is higher than in families (28:10) It's more expensive to run an institution to family-care (29:00) Being taken away to the orphanage (29:30) Care without losing identity, connection, belonging (31:00) Creating bigger problems by removing children from families (32:00) Ways that missionaries have undermined connections with local communities (33:00) Changing development to ask communities, what do you need? (35:00) Undermining cultural ethics of countries (36:00) Understanding the cultural differences and how it can create challenges (38:00) Transitioning to family care (40:00) Providing hands up not hand outs (44:00) When families get stronger, so do communities (47:00) Years of cultivating a relationship with the government (51:00) Nab's recommendations (56:00)

This week we are joined by Tiffany Bluhm, the author of Prey Tell and Never Alone. She speaks at conferences, companies, and churches, and her work has been featured in Publisher's Weekly, Sojourners, Red Letter Christians, the YouVersion Bible app, Jenny McCarthy Show, and more. She serves at the intersection of faith and culture, humor and women's issues. She lives in the PNW with her husband and two sons. In this episode, Tiffany helps us navigate hard conversations around abuse of power and what it means to create systems of accountability. Podcast Sponsors Faith to Action Initiative is hosting an upcoming webinar on Jun 8, 2023! Sign up today! Beyond Selfie Missions: How Missions Became All About 'Me' and What to do About It. You will learn practical ways to negate "selfie missions", realign your missions efforts with the heart of God, and participate in transformational and reconciling missions work around the world. Join the Haiti Family Care Network at the Better Together Conference this July! The Better Together conference will provide a dedicated space and time to convene, share, and learn over two and half days in Nashville. Resources and Links from the show Tiffany's Website Prey Tell: Why We Silence Women Who Tell the Truth and How Everyone Can Speak Up Speaker | Tiffany's Speaking Page Co-Host | Why Tho Podcast Instagram | Facebook | Twitter Show Notes Tiffany Bluhm joins and shares her background (6:40) The importance of representation in early childhood (7:00) Adopting from East Africa (16:00) What you've learned as an adoptive parent (19:00) Navigating complex trauma and creating safe homes (20:00) The importance of self-care for ourselves (21:00) The unique isolation of motherhood and not wanting to burden others (22:00) Creating community and places families can connect (26:05) Tiffany's take on "Adoption is trauma" (27:00) Trying to reconcile with family before international adoption (34:00) Tiffany's book 'Prey Tell' Discussing abuse of power (40:00) Biblical example of serving as an ally and bystander intervention (42:00) Demanding systematic accountability (43:00) When we see an imbalance of power (46:00) True accountability outside of the organization (50:00) Conflict of interest between leaders and boards (51:00) Pathways of reporting that are anonymous (52:00) What Tiffany's currently working on (55:00) Tiffany's personal recommendations (56:30) Brandon and Phil's recap (59:00)

This week, Jason Johnson from Christian Alliance for Orphans returns to the show. Jason is a writer and speaker who encourages families and equips church and organizational leaders on their foster care and adoption journeys. In this episode, Jason names and shares many of the struggles and challenges that foster and adoptive parents go through. He encourages us to find safe spaces and communities where we can process our emotions and have open and honest conversations. Podcast Sponsor Faith to Action Initiative is hosting an upcoming webinar on Jun 8, 2023! Sign up today! Beyond Selfie Missions: How Missions Became All About 'Me' and What to do About It. You will learn practical ways to negate "selfie missions", realign your missions efforts with the heart of God, and participate in transformational and reconciling missions work around the world. Resources and Links from the show Jason's Blog Reframing Foster Care Everyone Can Do Something Episode 167: Jason Johnson Everyone Can Do Something Episode 216: Poverty and Family Separation in US Child Welfare with Sarah Winograd Art of Gathering by Priya Parker Quit by Annie Duke Stolen Focus by Johann Hari Biola Missions Conference on YouTube Show Notes Jason catches us up on what he's been doing (5:00) The differences in how men and women approach fostering (8:10) Leading and following (11:00) Naming the struggles and grief involved in foster care(15:50) Giving ourselves the permission to think and feel (18:30) Being able to lean into the community around us (21:30) Improving how we do church engagement (25:00) Helping churches know how to care (28:00) Making the church our audience (31:00) Engagement as partnership (33:00) Urgency can breed scarcity (34:00) Focusing on family preservation and preventative measures (43:00) Living within the tensions and the need for foster care (45:00) Reckoning with the reality (46:00) Gaps and the spirit of scarcity (53:00) Gaps in the prevention space (56:00) Strategic benevolence and investing in the lives of at-risk families (58:50) Jason's recommendations (1:00:00)

This week we've got Kim de Blecourt from Nourished Hearts back on the show to talk with us about their ministry in Ukraine, the effects of the war on vulnerable children and the importance of coming alongside indigenous churches. Nourished Hearts is a ministry that encourages, inspires, and creates community around those who are involved with adoption, foster care, or orphan care internationally. Podcast Sponsor Masters Program at Multnomah University in Global Development and Justice The M.A. in Global Development and Justice (MAGDJ) program prepares students to work across the nexus of justice, peace building, and transformational community development work. The curriculum seeks to develop compassionate leaders, who are trauma-informed and prepared to support human flourishing in whatever context they work in. Resources and Links from the show BBC Article: Deportation of Ukrainian Children to Russia Kim's Website Nourished Hearts I Call You Mine: Embracing Adoption Relevant Magazine: Re-envisioning Orphan Care Relevant Magazine: Better Way to Talk about Adoption Think Orphan Episode 107. Be Patient with Kim de Blecourt Show Notes Kim shares her background (6:30) Kim shares about her recent experience in Ukraine (10:00) Trying to meet the needs of the internally displaced (12:30) Rising concerns for children in Ukraine (17:00) War crimes related to separating families (25:00) Knowing the heart of God and identifying with the orphan (32:00) God labels himself as the Father of the Fatherless (36:07) Importance of translating materials to other languages (38:30) Rick Warren as one person who has impacted Kim's thinking (52:00) Phil and Brandon recap the conversation (55:10) The importance of connections and networking (57:00) Just doing the next right thing (1:00:00) Relevant Magazine article 'A Better Way to Talk about Adoption' (1:03:00)

Kimberly Quinley, a pioneer of family-based care, has spent nearly 40 years serving in Thailand. She is the co-founder and Executive Director of Step Ahead, an organization committed to see all children in Thailand grow up in safe and nurturing families. Kimberly is a founding leader for Strong Families Alliance Thailand (SFAT), a Christian alliance with the same vision and goals as World Without Orphans. In episode 220, we cover everything from the core pillars of family strengthening, to collective impact, creating national roadmaps, and more. Podcast Sponsor JOURNEYHOME is offering online courses and practical resources for reforming models of care throughout the world. Created by seasoned frontline practitioners, the instructors in our community share field-tested and solution-based content to safely and effectively get kids home. Reintegrating Children with Disabilities into Family: Around the world, children with disabilities are 17x more likely than typically developing children to end up living in an institution. Our hope is that this course will help your organization find a way home for children with disabilities. Resources and Links from the show Urban Halo by Craig Greenfield Step Ahead Thailand Think Orphan Episode 51 with Delia Pop Show Notes Introducing Kimberly Quinley (7:00) Understanding the reality of orphanages (9:00) Starting Step Ahead (10:30) One mother's dilemma (12:00) Keeping families together is the best thing to do (15:20) Cross cultural insights, do your homework (18:00) Poverty is great reason children enter care (19:00) Come listen, and learn (20:00) Push and pull factors for children in residential care (25:00) Children at risk of trafficking (29:00) Strengthening families is most needed (35:00) Defining family strengthening (39:00) Different areas of family strengthening (40:00) Connecting families to services (43:00) Collective impact model (50:00) Defining shared vision (53:00) Monitoring and evaluation (55:00) Creating leadership (58:30) Drafting a national roadmap (59:00) Kimberly's recommendations (1:03) Brandon and Phil recap the conversation (1:15) Find additional shows and resources on thinkorphan.com

In episode 219, Lindsay Hadley is on to discuss the upcoming release of the documentary "Uncharitable". After many years in the nonprofit sector, Lindsay has become one of the most sought-after consultants and producers. This conversation challenges us to envision an unconstrained nonprofit sector. What if the charities could attract the best leaders, talents, and ideas? What if smaller operations with less impact stopped and those resources went to the best organization solving the problem? We get into these questions and more in this episode of Think Orphan. Podcast Sponsor Multnomah University's Masters in Global Development and Justice The M.A. in Global Development and Justice (MAGDJ) program prepares students to work across the nexus of justice, peacebuilding, and transformational community development work. The curriculum seeks to develop compassionate leaders, who are trauma-informed and prepared to support human flourishing in whatever context they work in. Resources and Links from the show Uncharitable Documentary Dan Pallotta's Ted Talk - The Way We Think about Charity is Dead Wrong Lindsay's Book Recommendation- Bonds that Make Us Free Show Notes Lindsay shares her background in nonprofit (5:05) Her involvement working in orphan care and global poverty (7:30) Overhead myth and a real example (17:25) Ted Talk behind 'Uncharitable' (24:00) Lindsay explains her role as an executive producer (33:00) The role risk plays for non-profits (38:00) Appreciation in the non-profit sector (49:00) The best organizations would grow (51:00) Lindsey's book recommendation (55:00) To see ourselves in the other (57:00) Lindsey's most influential person (59:00) Joe Ritchie on Caring for Orphans (1:00:00) Brandon and Phil recap their talk with Lindsey (1:02:00) The overhead myth (1:03:00)

In episode 218, we hear from lawyer and professor, Elizabeth Kirk. Elizabeth is the Director of the Center for Law and the Human Person, as well as a research associate at The Catholic University of America. Her work spans a variety of law in child welfare, parental rights, and adoption policy. In addition to her career, her lived experiences as an adoptee and an adoptive parent, give her a unique perspective and voice to speak into the conversation happening around adoption today. She talks with Brandon about the role that infant adoption could play following last year's Dobbs decision at the Supreme Court, misconceptions around adoption, as well as insight on the decision making process for women that have an unplanned pregnancy. Podcast Sponsor Masters Program at Mulnomah University in Global Development and Justice The M.A. in Global Development and Justice (MAGDJ) program prepares students to work across the nexus of justice, peacebuilding, and transformational community development work. The curriculum develops compassionate leaders and professionals, who are trauma-informed and prepared to support human flourishing in whatever context they work in. Resources and Links from the show LifeMark movie Show Notes Elizabeth shares her background and what drew her into this work (5:20) The role of adoption in a post Roe vs. Wade world (13:00) Overviewing pro-choice arguments against adoption (14:52) A view of pregnancy that includes communities (18:20) Mothers and decision making in adoption (24:50) A global south perspective (27:20) Misconceptions concerning adoption (29:00) Elizabeth's adoption experience and a story from a birth mother (35:20) Is adoption a viable option in a birth mother's mind? (49:00)

In episode 217, we have a special on the ground episode to share how one organization's journey and commitment to reunifying families has inspired others. Trust for Africa's work in Lesotho has gone beyond their own organization and now supports other organizations to transition to family-based care. Naomi Schalm, Mafusi Semethe, Mbele Horoto, and Bokang Lipholo all join us in this conversation to celebrate the movement underway in Africa's "Kingdom of the Sky." Podcast Sponsor JOURNEYHOME is offering online courses and practical resources for reforming models of care throughout the world. Created by seasoned frontline practitioners, the instructors in our community share field-tested and solution-based content to safely and effectively get kids home. Resources and Links from the show Trust for Africa On the Ground in Lesotho- The Power of Family Reunification Show Notes The challenges for children in residential care (4:45) Ramping up family tracing efforts (5:48) The hard work of individualized care plans (6:55) Importance of follow-up after placement (7:40) One 12 year old's journey home (10:20) Another story of family separation and reunification (12:40) Are we including children in their restoration? (15:20) Mafusi asks what can we do differently? (18:15) The start of training other orphanages and childcare workers (19:20) Making plans to reunify children (20:30) Family strengthening programs (23:00) The importance of following up with families (26:00) Emotional and psychological challenges for children in care and building resilience (28:15) Resolving misunderstandings (30:00) Mbele on children aging out of the orphanage (39:00) On influencing the country and bringing change (41:30) Concerns about transitioning (42:10) Director of an orphanage, Bokang, shares about kids aging out (45:30) Addressing more than material needs (46:40) Children visiting families during holidays (48:40) A vision to help more children with a different model (49:30) Visit thinkorphan.com for additional resources and stories.

In episode 216, we hear from US care reform leader, Sarah Winograd from Together for Families. Sarah speaks passionately about the complexities in child welfare and foster care as a system, how poverty contributes to family separation, and the problematic ways we've seen and judged birth families. She asks the hard questions- if most children aren't coming into foster care because of abuse, what resources and systems are we investing in to keep those families together? What are we doing to intervene and stabilize families in order to prevent separation and keep children in families? Can the church do better? Full show notes can be found at thinkorphan.com

In episode 215, we have the privilege of sitting down with Jenn Hook to glean from her experiences in the foster care system and hear about her newly released book, Thriving Families. Jenn is the Founder and Executive Director of Replanted. She's also the author of Replanted: Faith Based Support for Adoptive and Foster Families. Attachment and Trauma Focused Therapy Course by Deborah Gray - Link Use the Promo Code "ATFT99" at checkout to take advantage of this limited time deal Full show notes and links can be found at thinkorphan.com