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Childhood is full of small obstacles: learning to crawl, taking first steps, speaking first words, overcoming the fear of that first day of school.

But for many children across our region and around the world, the obstacles of youth are anything but small. Each day, they struggle to overcome poverty, abuse, discrimination and systemic challenges of all stripes.

“This is a call to action to all of us,” said Tim Crooks, executive director of the community-based youth support organization Phoenix, speaking to more than 80 people gathered in the atrium of the Life Science Research Institute.

The occasion: a celebration to mark the official launch of the Children and Youth in Challenging Contexts (CYCC) Institute, hosted at Dal. It’s a collaboration that responds to the alarming need for interdisciplinary research to support marginalized kids and teens locally, nationally and globally.

“What they are looking for is the very kind of thing that today we gather to celebrate,” said Crooks. “It’s a collaboration born of a common ground, a common passion and a common understanding. It’s born of a desire to come together and to share our very best so that we can create relevant support and an innovative response.”

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