Children Are Us Foundation () is a charity for people with an

intellectual disability Intellectual disability (ID), also known as general learning disability in the United Kingdom and formerly mental retardation,Rosa's Law, Pub. L. 111-256124 Stat. 2643(2010). is a generalized neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by signifi ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. The goal for this organization is to inspire and promote the potential talent of people with

developmental disability Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...

. Children Are Us Foundation is a non-profit private organization ( NPO) which provides long-term care and job training to people with

Down syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensa ...

, multiple dysfunction and other

mental illnesses A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

. It works on changing people's general perception, hoping people can understand and respect people with intellectual disability, instead of making fun of them or looking down on them. The principles of the organization are love, professionalism, and humanity. They advocate "self-support" of people with intellectual disability by providing adaptive technology and work opportunity so that they can live normal lives as others.

History

The organization was founded by parents of people with

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

, on 29 June 1995 as Children Are Us of Cultural and Educational Foundation. It was then recognized by the

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

in May 2006 and registered as Children Are Us Foundation for Social Welfare in October the same year.

Business

Children Are Us is famous in Taiwan for operating bakeries and restaurants that employ people with intellectual disabilities. The first Children Are Us bakery opened in Kaohsiung city in 1997, and the Foundation has since expanded, opening other branches in Taipei city and Hsinchu city. It has operated an Italian restaurant in Taipei where people with an intellectual disability are employed and a coffee shop at Taipei's City Hall. Controversially, the agency has been accused of paying its disabled employees below the minimum wage.

References

Intellectual disability organizations Medical and health organizations based in Taiwan Organizations for children with health issues Child-related organizations in Taiwan Disability in Taiwan

External links

Official website
{{Taiwan-org-stub