This unique project is a co-creation between children, caregivers, creatives, and those who support them.
The Children
Between five and eight million children reside in orphanages around the world. Dear Future began through a desire to elevate their voices.
The vast majority of children living in institutionalized care have experienced a form of abandonment, abuse, or neglect. Even modest amounts of time spent in institutionalized care have been shown to delay development, affect physical and cognitive growth, and cause attachment insecurity, which impacts an individual’s ability to regulate emotions and interact competently with others in society. For every three months spent in institutionalized care, a child will lose one month of linear growth in the absence of proper intervention.
Due to a lack of resources, many orphanages have very large children-to-caregiver ratios, ranging from one caregiver to 25, 30, or even 50 children. This denies most children the individualized care they need to thrive. The Granny Program was developed to step in and be that attention, that love, and that care that all children need. This project focuses on a group of children between the ages of 8 and 10 who are receiving the love of a caregiver “Granny” through the Granny Program. Through an art therapy approach, the project guided them to write letters to their future selves, sharing their dreams and hopes for the future. It also had them create characters for themselves and then bring those characters to life, and share them with the world.
The Grannies
Grannies are women and men from the local community who are trained in child development and trauma-based care to help the children they work with overcome significant developmental delays and learn what it is to trust, love, and receive the attention and care they deserve. Grannies spend several hours a day, five days a week with the same two children, providing the consistent, one-on-one attention that children need to thrive.
Within just six months of participating in the program, more than 90% of children experience marked improvements in their motor, social, and cognitive development, which continues as they grow with the program.
The Grannies also benefit from the program through the additional financial support they receive which helps their families, and the renewed sense of purpose they feel in bonding with the children they serve and giving back to their communities.
There are currently close to 1,000 Grannies caring for 500 children throughout Colombia, South Africa, and Ghana, with more programs being opened each year.
The Location
The setting for this unique project is itself a persona and played a critical role in the process. The project took place in Cali, Colombia at Fundacion Chiquitines, a children’s home and the location of the first Granny Program in Colombia. This project is incredibly appreciative to Fundacion Chiquitines for their hospitality, support, and partnership in this project.
Behind the Project
Dear Future was commissioned and supported by Spence-Chapin Services to Families and Children, a renowned organization dedicated to supporting children and families, and founder of The Granny Program.
For over 110 years, Spence-Chapin has advocated for the welfare of children, helped to strengthen families, and consistently provided support and resources to anyone connected to adoption. We continue to grow and expand our programs and services to best serve all families and their communities, those connected to adoption, and vulnerable children around the world.
Spence-Chapin launched the Granny Program in 1995 to support children living in institutionalized settings who are often deprived of consistent, nurturing human interaction due to limited resources. This lack of interaction is correlated to risks of lifelong developmental delays and challenges with healthy attachment. The Granny Program connects young children with consistent, loving caregivers who visit with them for several hours every day, helping them reach milestones, overcome delays, and receive the care and attention they deserve. The program currently serves more than 500 youth throughout South Africa, Colombia, and Ghana.
This exhibition is a powerful testament to the transformative potential of storytelling, brought to life through the lens of PENDULUM, a creative agency and production company dedicated to impact storytelling. In crafting this multifaceted narrative experience, PENDULUM assembled an extraordinary team of visionary artists and creatives from Colombia, including Costume Designer, Art Director, and Cultural Creative, Felipe Ginebra; Costume & Fashion Designer, Isabella Gómez; Cinematographers Juan Velasquez & Mariana Medina Hoyos and translator Laura Sotelo Labrada.
Rom and Noa, founders of PENDULUM, believe that stories possess an unparalleled ability to shape our perceptions, inspire action, and ultimately, transform reality itself.
Whether through thought-provoking films, multimedia campaigns, cutting edge workshops, or innovative storytelling experiences, PENDULUM strives to create narratives that resonate deeply, fostering connections, shifting perspectives, and galvanizing audiences to become active participants in creating a more just, sustainable, and equitable world.
PENDULUM collaborates closely with nonprofits, grassroots organizations, activists, and conscious brands, leveraging diverse talents – filmmaking, writing, design, strategy, and more – to amplify meaningful voices and bring their missions to life.