Our Governance
The General Assembly
The General Assembly determines the general policies and undertakes all important decisions, including election and recalling of the Steering Committee members, the approval of the budget, the approval of the strategy and the acceptance and exclusion of members of the Network. It is the democratic heart of the Network where a fair and equal representation of each member’s voices is ensuring.
The Steering Committee
The Steering Committee is the executive body of the Network in charge of the orientations and strategies that the General Assembly will adopt. It decides the policy recommendations for the Network, the cross-cutting themes to be addressed, the Strategy to be pursued. All its decisions are shared in a transparent way. The Steering Committee Members are: DCI Greece, DCI Italy, Aire Centre, Tdh Europe, LBI, DCI Netherlands, DCI Belgium, Strathclyde University CYCL.
The Operational Team
The Operational Team is responsible for the day-to-day implementation of the strategy, implements the guidelines decided by the SC with approval of the GA. It is accountable to the GA and the GA annual meetings are the official tool allowing the OT to report on progress. It provides the secretariat, leadership and general coordination of the Network. It relays all information to the Members responds to their requests. The OT ensures the promotion of the Network by seeking necessary funds and partners for the overall operation of the Network.
Mariama Diallo - Coordinator - mariama.diallo@cfjnetwork.eu
Barbara Melamed - Communication Officer - barbara.melamed@cfjnetwork.eu
Barbara joined the Network from its inception in March 2022. She has Degree in Communications and an extensive Brand, Marketing and Communications background in public, private and not-for-profit organisations. Her interest around children's rights and justice and migration developed over the years and on the ground as well, having worked and volunteered for two charities in London working with participatory methods and children coming from a migrant background.
Lotte Buekenhout - Advocacy Officer - lotte.buekenhout@cfjnetwork.eu
Lotte joined the Network in 2023 after having gained experience in different fields of human rights on the ground, working as a lawyer, specialising in immigration law (international protection, family reunification, regularisation procedures etc). She also has experience with cases in family and penal law after which she transitioned to the civil society and worked as a legal advisor at GAMS Belgium.
Vanessa Buvens - Impact & Quality Officer - vanessa.buvens@defensedesenfants.be
Vanessa ensures the network, its members and Steering Committee are monitoring key metrics and indicators to measure our progress towards our ambitious strategy. She has over 10 years experience in designing, managing and assessing the impact of child rights projects in a variety of contexts, to improve children’s access to justice, their protection and participation.
Susanna Tuccio - Fundraising Officer - susanna.tuccio@cfjnetwork.eu
Susanna joined the CFJ-EN in September 2022 to lead the development and implementation of the first fundraising strategy, helping to raise much needed funds to keep promoting child friendly justice. Before joining the CFJ-EN, she worked for almost two years at Street Child Italia, where she was responsible for the overall management of the Italian section.
Mimona Manouach - Financial and Administrative Officer - mimona.manouach@defensedesenfants.be
Children's Governance
The governance of the CFJ-EN has also been thought to fully integrate children’s participation and welcome their contributions in the annual strategic plan. Children and young people aged 12-24, accompanied by CFJ-EN members, will be involved in CFJ-EN governance-related decisions and be invited to provide inputs on capacity building, awareness raising and advocacy material.