Who we are

We believe that:

Every child deserves a safe and enjoyable childhood

Every young person should feel empowered

Every community we work with is engaged

Together with children, we fight to ensure that Child Rights are respected in full and implemented, leaving no one behind. We also engage to influence political agendas and strategies that affect children and young people.

Through our 983 projects in 68 countries, we work to protect children from extreme poverty, violence and exploitation.

We empower children and young people to actively shape the societies they live in and to inspire sustainable systemic change which puts their rights and needs first.

We involve all the relevant actors for positive results (parents, caregivers, policy makers and private companies).

When mobilising our partners, expertise and resources, we create environments where children thrive.

Terre des Hommes is constantly increasing its capacity to protect children and defend their rights everywhere.

Vision & Mission

For every child, a childhood. Every young person empowered. Every community engaged.

It is our mission to make this vision a reality.

We fight to

ensure that child rights are put into practice
protect children from harm, even in the most difficult circumstances
influence agendas and strategies that affect children and youth at all levels

We strive to

give children access to the childhood they’re entitled to
empower children and youth to actively shape societies, structures and mindsets
achieve sustainable system change for children

We mobilise to

involve all relevant actors, from local to global, in the solutions we seek
engage partners, expertise and resources in creating environments in which children thrive
build capacity for the protection of children and the implementation of their rights

Our commitments

Our commitment to safeguarding

TDHIF is deeply committed to preventing harm and protecting children and all vulnerable individuals across all our operations. Our comprehensive Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct (CoC) demonstrate a zero-tolerance approach to abuse, encompassing sexual exploitation, harassment, physical and emotional abuse, and neglect.

The policy and the CoC apply to the International Secretariat and all member organisations must comply with the standards, establishing clear responsibilities. It ensures systematic identification and mitigation of safeguarding risks through comprehensive protocols and mandatory training.

Preventive measures include rigorous staff and volunteer screening, mandatory safeguarding training, and systematic risk assessment. Our approach prioritises early identification and proactive management of potential safeguarding challenges.

A confidential reporting channel (concern@terredeshommes.org) enables safe and anonymous reporting of concerns to the Secretariat. In addition all member organisations have their internal reporting channels that must follow the standards set by the Safeguarding policy. We guarantee strict confidentiality, protection from retaliation, and professional investigation of all reported incidents.

Organisational accountability is paramountand the policy and the CoC undergo regular reviews and updates. This ensures our safeguarding approach remains robust, responsive, and aligned with best practices.

Our commitment to sustainability

We are committed to and actively working on reducing our environmental footprint throughout the Terre des Hommes network. For example, we prioritise virtual meetings and electronic communications, organise in-person meetings in locations accessible by train (whenever possible), use recycled materials, recycle waste, and support remote working.

Taking note of the scientific consensus and the urgent call to action, Terre des Hommes Switzerland (Suisse and Schweiz) and Terre des Hommes Lausanne have committed to and are taking action to reduce their emissions by 50% by 2030 by participating in the Climate Action Accelerator.