Two Wishes international campaign launch
So, in 2020, we quietly launched the Two Wishes Foundation. Two Wishes, for short. We already have (small) offices in Australia, the USA, Europe, the UK, Israel and China and active representatives in many countries.
Our vision is of a world where all children are free to maintain and develop positive relationships with all who love and care for them – whatever changes life brings to their families.
Our mission is to build healthier families so that children are not harmed when parents split up, or families change, and to do nothing less than transform how society thinks about, and deals with, divorce and separation. We want the world to “re-imagine family breakdown” and, even perhaps, to “reimagine family” – as a living network of interconnecting and loving relationships with a child at its centre.
If that seems altogether too grandiose or bold or vague or so much harder or less effective than, for instance, reforming family law or educating professionals, be assured, it is not. For, unlike other approaches that have been tried and have demonstrably failed for decades, the world is already on our side. We simply have to jolt the world’s awareness of the issues and the solutions – in the most effective, and cost-effective, ways.
If we’re honest, most people don’t know a thing about the sort of psychological abuse that children are commonly exposed to during a family break-up – and those few who do and who decide to take action tend, understandably, to focus on one solution. It’s comforting, after all, to think there is some simple, silver bullet: making mediation mandatory; instituting “a rebuttable presumption of shared parenting”; creating well-crafted artworks or events that bring greater understanding to new audiences.
Two Wishes believes that many such endeavours may contribute to change and is engaged with a number of them. We recognise that a campaign is built with the work of many and we can’t always predict which element will yield the greatest reward or create the tipping point, the paradigm shift, that’s needed in how we think about the families of the future. But, importantly, none of these will do it on their own.
We also recognise that the most effective campaign needs people walking in the same direction, agreeing rhetoric and sharing goals. It must be built on strong foundations too: it needs a sustainable structure to last for decades. And it needs a clear and positive focus, with a well-coordinated division of labour so no wheels are reinvented and demonstrable progress is a constant reward.
So it is that Two Wishes is on a long, collaborative journey, towards a shared goal:
- We’re using our in-house expertise to produce TV programs for international television – programs that will play a central role in an extensive and professionally produced social impact campaign (we’ll even get paid to promote our cause!);
- We’re producing TV ads for mainstream television and social media around the globe – our first (“no child should have to choose”) was filmed at the end of 2020;
- We’re generating mainstream media coverage on TV, radio and in print media that will reach a mainstream audience with key messages and calls to action. In Australia, we’ve reached 10-20% of the entire population already;
- We’re launching a Two Wishes Festival of Art and Media;
- We’ve created an accreditation scheme – our Family Health Ratings – comparing the family friendliness and benefits of different programs and pilot schemes around the world;
- We’re meeting with politicians and creating comprehensive, inclusive policies … for there is no point in motivating the world to act … if no-one knows what action needs to be taken! … and …
- We’re liaising with, and trying to bring together, groups and organisations around the world who share our vision and our aims.
So, please, take a look at the new home of our international campaign: twowishes.org.
We invite you all to challenge us … and, if you agree with our vision and aims, to support or work with us.
Thank you.
