Building on the concept of children's rights enshrined in the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child, this volume explores the lives of children through their own eyes and voices. It argues that child participation is both a right and a necessity if child-centred social programmes are to succeed. More broadly, harnessing the energy of children could help the region tackle pressing environmental and social problems. The author talks to children across the continent, watching them at work and play, on the streets or in the home. He interviews children in Brazil, Jamaica, Peru, Colombia, Honduras and Nicaragua, as well as teachers, welfare workers and other adults involved in their lives.