Director’s Cut – Vishal Talreja; Co-founder & Executive Director, Dream A Dream

UNICEF recognizes the critical role of sport and physical play in children’s lives. According to UNICEF, at the most fundamental level, sport and play are a child’s right, as detailed in article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child: States shall “recognize the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts." Added to this is the broad consensus that regular physical activity is essential for the physical, mental, psychological and social development of children and adolescents. Involvement in sport can boost children’s health, improve academic performance and help reduce crime. That is the concept of sport for development – that sport is not just an end in itself, but also an effective tool to help improve the lives of children, families and communities. Sport and physical education is fundamental to the early development of children and youth and the skills learned during play, physical education and sport contribute to the holistic development of young people. Through participation in sport and physical education, young people learn about the importance of key values such as: honesty, teamwork, fair play, respect for themselves and others, and adherence to rules.

At Dream A Dream, we call this Life Skills Development and since 2003 have been using a variety of sports based mediums to develop critical life coping skills in children from vulnerable backgrounds in Bangalore. Few things possess more power than empowering children from vulnerable backgrounds with life skills. The idea of using a team sports like football is to create a fun-filled, experiential, non-threatening learning environment for children. We believe what children learn on field can be directly transferred to life off the pitch. For Dream A Dream, sports like football are more than a game. It’s a medium to deliver life skills to children from vulnerable backgrounds.

The Dream Football Program was launched in 2007, with 12 kids. In 2009-10 had 518 children enrolled with a 48:52 girl-boy ratio. In 2010-11 the aim is reach out to 1500 vulnerable children. The program helps children make healthier choices, resist negative pressures and avoid risk behaviour. The program aims to help children grow up to take on life’s challenges confidently and become positive, contributing members of society. We have seen tremendous positive results. Children graduating from Dream Programs are today perusing personal ambitions. They acknowledge that the program has given them wings to fly! For example, 19 years old Arvind (Name changed) joined our sports program 7 years ago. Coming from a violent, conflict-ridden background, the sports program helped him channelize his violence positively into sport. Today, he confidently takes on life’s challenges just the way he did on the sports field. According to Arvind, “I adore learning about computers, reading books, playing football; also I want to study further”. A recent validation of the quality, impact and potential of the Dream Football Program was the global membership to streetfootballworld (www.streetfootballworld.org) network.

According to SFW, “We are convinced that Dream A Dream’s valuable work in the field of Development through Football, your networking commitment, and strong community support will enable Dream A Dream to make a tangible contribution to the network and its mission: to develop a centre of competence that interconnects and strengthens long-term football based social/development initiatives that transform the lives of disadvantaged individuals from around the world, increasing their opportunities and consolidating an environment of social change on a global scale.” This is a huge boost to our consistent efforts to promote the use of sports in child development for over 8 years now. Finally, as Dream A Dream embarks on a growth path to take our Football program to thousands more children in the coming years, I leave you with a few thoughts on the power of sport in our communities. According to Kofi Annan, Ex-Secretary General, United Nations, “At its simplest, of course, sport and physical activity directly builds fitness and co-ordination, improving mental and physical well-being and resistance to disease. Sport teaches the values of team-work, discipline and leadership as well as the reward of effort. Each are valuable lessons for life. It builds confidence and social skills and is key to the healthy development for our children.” Do watch our football program video on our website: www.dreamadream.org.