Lecture: In The Best Interests Of A Child: A Microhistory of Child Relief

Abstract
In this lecture, we will dive into a case study of a displaced unaccompanied child who was found in Germany after the end of World War II to explore how and why the international welfare workers concluded that resettlement of this child would be a better option than repatriation to a home country. We will discuss the fates of refugee children, the social workers' ideas about the children's welfare, and how all these had changed in the lights of the post-war political transformations.

CV
Olga Gnydiuk, holds a Ph.D. in history from the European University Institute (Florence). Her dissertation examined how the social workers of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration, International Refugee Organization and US military authorities took care of Ukrainian unaccompanied displaced children and planned their resettlement after World War II. Her research interests include the history of family, children and childhood, post-war reconstruction, international humanitarianism, welfare and social policies in Europe and the Soviet Union.