Media Statement: #WasteNot competition sheds light on the link between environmental health and child health
A new national competition is drawing much-needed public awareness to how the environments children grow up in shape their health and development. #WasteNot encourages the public to get creative about reducing, reusing and recycling. It’s a collaboration between Create Change — an initiative of the DG Murray Trust (DGMT) and Hold My Hand — a […]
People’s Post Article: Dialogue delves in children’s lives
Where a child grows up shapes their access to education, safety, public services and opportunities, making local government a powerful force in children’s lives. This was the focus of the first Metro Lives dialogue, held at the Homecoming Centre in District Six on Tuesday 21 July, where government representatives, child rights advocates and political leaders […]
National Strategy to Accelerate Action for Children – Officially Released
The Department of Social Development has officially published the National Strategy to Accelerate Action for Children (NSAAC) on its website — a first for South Africa and a significant milestone in how government and civil society work together for children. Arising from President Ramaphosa’s 2024 State of the Nation Address, the NSAAC sets out ten […]
Birth without violence
The Learning Lunch podcast explores ideas, approaches and social innovations – creating opportunity for non-profit organisations’ teams to discover what others are learning and space to reflect on what these insights might mean for their own strategy and programme implementation. Download takeaway instructions Although obstetric violence is recognised as a form of gender-based violence in […]
The mission to end stunting
The Learning Lunch podcast explores ideas, approaches and social innovations – creating opportunity for non-profit organisations’ teams to discover what others are learning and space to reflect on what these insights might mean for their own strategy and programme implementation. Download takeaway instructions Stunting is more than a height problem — it’s a sign that […]
Wired for stress
The Learning Lunch podcast explores ideas, approaches and social innovations – creating opportunity for non-profit organisations’ teams to discover what others are learning and space to reflect on what these insights might mean for their own strategy and programme implementation. Download takeaway instructions Growing up in poverty doesn’t only mean fewer opportunities because of structural […]
Daily Maverick Article: How cheap junk food and a R560 grant are fuelling stunting and child obesity
Obesity and overweight rates in young children have almost doubled since 2016 in South Africa. In his State of the Nation Address this year, President Cyril Ramaphosa vowed to eradicate child stunting by 2030 when he said “This year, we will embark on a mission to end child stunting by 2030 and tackle malnutrition among […]
SAFM Interview: Where a child grows up shapes their future
On 21 July 2026, DGMT — with Change Ideas and the Hold My Hand campaign — hosted the inaugural Metro Lives public dialogue at the Homecoming Centre in District Six, Cape Town. Metro Lives was created to open up a public conversation about how South Africa’s cities and municipalities can build better lives for children, […]
SAFM Interview: More than a quarter of South African children are stunted. For many, it starts before birth
DGMT CEO Dr David Harrison spoke to Ashraf Garda on SAfm’s National Pulse about what poverty actually does to a child’s body and brain. About a thousand children die of severe acute malnutrition in South Africa every year, but Dr Harrison called that the tip of the iceberg. Beneath it sits chronic food insecurity — […]
People’s Post Article: Metro Lives – How Cape Town’s municipalities shape children’s futures
Where a child grows up shapes their access to education, safety, public services and opportunities. Consequently, local government is a powerful force in children’s lives. This was the focus of the first Metro Lives dialogue. The event was held at the District Six Museum’s Homecoming Centre on Tuesday 21 July. Government representatives, child-rights advocates and political leaders attended to […]