Vanessa Currie

Vanessa Currie serves as Associate Professor in the School of Humanitarian Studies at Royal Roads University and Executive Director of the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD), a Canadian-based charity formally affiliated with the university. With over two decades of global experience across North America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, she specializes in child rights and participatory protection systems, focusing on empowering children and youth as active agents of change through intergenerational collaboration.

Her academic credentials include:

• Masters of Arts in International Child Welfare (Highest Distinction), University of East Anglia, England (2007)
• Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, University of British Columbia (1998)

Currie's research centers on children's participation in their own protection systems, utilizing innovative art, play and nature-based methodologies to strengthen young people's connection to identity, belonging and wellbeing. Her work consistently employs participatory action research frameworks that engage children, youth, families and communities as co-creators of sustainable solutions to systemic challenges. This approach bridges academic theory with practical field applications across diverse cultural contexts and crisis situations.

Analysis of her publication history (2011-2021) reveals three dominant research trajectories: the development and implementation of children's clubs as safeguarding mechanisms in educational settings; arts-based participatory methods for youth engagement in community change; and context-specific adaptations of child protection systems during crises including refugee resettlement and the COVID-19 pandemic. Her work demonstrates consistent emphasis on decolonizing research practices and centering Indigenous knowledge systems, particularly evident in collaborations with First Nations communities regarding child welfare.

As Executive Director of IICRD, Currie leads international initiatives that support children and families impacted by adversity to design and implement transformative solutions. Her projects consistently involve multi-stakeholder partnerships with organizations including UNICEF, the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, Terre des hommes, and the Child Protection Global Cluster. While specific grant funding details aren't provided, her operational model integrates research, program implementation and policy advocacy through sustained community partnerships.

Currie's work operates through dynamic intergenerational teams that include youth researchers, community elders, and professional practitioners. Her leadership at IICRD fosters collaborative environments where children's voices directly shape child protection systems, particularly through innovative platforms like the Children's Clubs framework and the YouCreate Art-kit methodology. Current initiatives focus on strengthening community-based accountability mechanisms and adapting participatory approaches for crisis contexts while maintaining ethical commitments to child safety and agency.