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History of CRF

The CRF's journey began in South Africa in 2007. Even as our work with children takes on an increasingly global focus, we continue to serve young South Africans. Radio production workshops in community centers and schools, hospital audio diary initiatives, audio pen pal programs, and youth dialogues - these are some of the projects that bring out the voices of young people in South Africa. The CRF's radio show, The Radio Workshop, shares the stories of these young people with a nationwide audience of regular listeners.

Why Radio?

Because radio is the most widely available media everywhere, because radio doesn't cost a lot, because radio connects people and their stories to each other.

Young people have a lot to think about, but not enough outlets to speak about their challenges, to voice their concerns, or to share their triumphs and strategies for success. They need the opportunity to tell their own stories and to learn from the stories of others.

Our radio production workshops and broadcasts provide such a space. Radio connects young people to each other. It has the power to inform, educate, entertain, and to inspire a generation of future leaders.

Project Highlights

The Radio Workshop Show

The Radio Workshop, the Children's Radio Foundation's radio broadcast, airs nationwide in South Africa, and is available on our website and as a podcast on iTunes. The show offers younger listeners a mix of current affairs, entertainment, information, and showcases the stories of young people.

A report about students trying to get a library in their school, audio profiles of a young refugee struggling to belong, a career profile of an architect, a doctor responding to listeners' health questions, and conversations with female athletes about dedication and motivation - these are just a few examples of our innovative programs that are designed to inspire young people and to nurture a generation of youth leaders.

All of our audio content is made available for free to broadcast outlets around the world, and is downloadable from our website. To listen to episodes of the Radio Workshop, click here.

Working with UNICEF

Since 2009, the Children's Radio Foundation has partnered with UNICEF on a series of initiatives. In South Africa, the CRF facilitated dialogues with South African youth on citizenship and social change, and produced a series of radio programs for the anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. As part of UNICEF's climate change initiatives, the CRF trained over 200 young people from 44 countries as radio journalists at the Children's Climate Forum in Copenhagen and at UNICEF's Zambia Children's Climate Conference. In World Cup in My Village, the CRF partnered with UNICEF to provide youth media training and access to coverage of the FIFA World Cup 2010 for young people in Zambia and Rwanda. More exciting UNICEF initiatives are in the works - check the News section for more information.

Connecting Classrooms

The CRF uses radio and other technologies to connect young people across the world and to facilitate cross-cultural dialogues about pressing social issues. Pairing high school classrooms in different countries, our audio pen pal program gets young people to exchange audio letters and to participate in debates on a regular basis. The project encourages young people to see the world from a different perspective, fosters a spirit of dialogue and debate, and teaches vital communications skills.

Hospital Radio

In 2009, the Children's Radio Foundation launched a radio project at Cape Town's Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, the largest pediatric hospital on the African continent. Using audio recorders and microphones, we've trained a group of young patients to tell their stories for radio. Chronicling the long wait for a kidney transplant, interviewing a doctor about treatment for a severe burn, and diarizing life with a chronic heart and lung condition - these are a few of stories produced by our Red Cross radio reporters. The audio reports document the questions and concerns of young people in a time of illness, and provide them with the much-needed opportunity to speak about their situations. To hear some of the hospital radio productions, click here.

In the next stage of the project, we will be setting up an in-house radio station at the hospital, and each patient will receive an MP3 player upon admission to the hospital so that they can receive the audio content on offer.