How are children doing in Iceland?
The answer is scattered across many systems and dozens of institutions that are rarely examined together. Promises of improvement are many, but the follow-through is patchy. We are building an independent database that brings the whole picture together: what is decided, what is delivered, and what actually changes.
As the system grows larger, the overview shrinks and accountability disappears
The system meant to safeguard children's welfare is larger and more complex than most people realise. Iceland's Government Offices house eleven ministries. Four to five of them carry the core tasks, and more ministries take part in individual pieces, from the state budget to coordination. Under and alongside the ministries sit agencies that deliver and oversee. Day-to-day services then stretch across the whole country: more than sixty municipalities, over two hundred preschools, more than two hundred compulsory and upper-secondary schools, and health clinics in every region. At least eighteen key acts govern children's affairs, along with a host of regulations. A child with complex needs can have a case open with several bodies at once. Where one body's responsibility ends and another's begins, gaps often form, and it is hard to say who is responsible for what. That is exactly where children risk falling between systems.
Fragmented responsibility
The field cuts across dozens of institutions and service providers that are rarely examined together, and it is often unclear who is responsible for what.
Scattered data
The information exists, but it is dispersed, inconsistent, and hard to reach for anyone seeking an overview.
The result
Without the full picture, every step forward is guesswork: improvements are promised in good faith, but no one knows whether they reach children, and children can fall between systems without anyone seeing it happen.
This is how we are going to do it.
We are going to build a system tailored to children's affairs in Iceland that automatically gathers all the data from every relevant party; what is not openly available, we obtain by fully using freedom-of-information law. With it we will build a coherent picture of how the system actually works.
We connect to everything that is open
We automatically collect data that the public sector publishes openly, whether in open data feeds, streams, or subscriptions from Alþingi, the ministries, Statistics Iceland, and the consultation portal. What is not found there, we request under freedom-of-information law.
We classify and connect
Every document is classified and linked by which institutions, laws, and decisions it concerns. This builds a whole picture: one place where all the data on a given matter can be found, from everyone involved, with references to primary sources.
We follow through
Nothing leaves us until people who know the field have reviewed it, and every claim carries a source. We hold ourselves to the same standard we hold others to. The findings are then used to build various outputs: consultation responses, presentations, and other material useful in the debate.
What comes out of this?
Out of the data come open products, each traceable to a primary source:
The Accountability Map
A unified map of the public sector's chain of responsibility in children's affairs: who is responsible for what, and where responsibility may be lacking.
Rights and complaint avenues
A continuation of the Accountability Map: where children and parents can turn when accountability falls short, to which bodies, and on the basis of which laws.
Dashboard
An open information hub with key figures on the welfare of children and young people, with a source behind every figure.
Incident and promise timelines
Open timelines showing what has been decided, promised, and delivered in each policy area, with documents behind every status.
Annual report on the state of children
A regular review of how children are doing within the main service systems: trends from year to year and whether changes are for the better.
End-of-term report
A summary at the end of the parliamentary term comparing promises and policy goals with what was delivered, based on real data.
Data access and API
A direct connection to the data for media, researchers, and nonprofits, free of charge for those working on behalf of children.
Secure tip-off channel
An encrypted, separate route for practitioners and family members to pass on tips.
Data literacy and fact defence
Focused sharing of verified information to reduce misinformation and strengthen informed debate.
Consultation responses and advocacy
Formal consultation responses on bills and regulations, grounded in the data and presented to committees, ministries, and practitioners.
We claim nothing without a source.
All of our data-gathering and publishing rests on transparency. Every fact we publish comes with references, dates, and direct links to official source data where applicable. We hold ourselves to the same scrutiny we ask of others.
We strengthen the whole sector that works for children.
Other public-benefit organizations in this field are our most important allies. The systems we build we share with them free of charge, and we also use them to strengthen their cause.
Where HÆ fits in the wider picture.
We work within the frameworks of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Nordic tradition of evidence-based child welfare policy, and look to peer organizations across Europe for what works.
Foundations and EU funding
We are open to conversations with foundations, EU-level programs (including those supporting youth and children's rights), and international peer organizations interested in comparative work with Iceland.
Research and collaboration
If your organization works on children's policy, youth services, or data infrastructure in the Nordics or Europe more widely, and you're interested in Iceland as a comparison case, we'd like to talk.
Press and media
English-language queries and interview requests are welcome. Press materials, logos, and boilerplate are available on request.
Let's change this together.
HÆ's success rests on collaboration with people and companies who want to support the work. There are many ways to take part, whatever suits you or your company.
Donations
Regular support secures independence and staying power. Building the systems is costly, and we rely on the support of the public and businesses.
Volunteers
Give your time and energy to the work. The tasks are well-defined, and you choose what suits you.
Fundraising team
Planning and running fundraising campaigns, events, and grant applications. Participants choose projects that fit their own interests and schedule.
Advisory council
Share your expertise on HÆ's advisory council. There, professionals support analysis and advocacy directly.
Companies
Support the work with funding, professional services, or other contributions, such as facilities or equipment.
News and announcements.
The latest publications, reports, and analyses from HÆ in one place. Fréttavaktin, our curated news monitor, is maintained in Icelandic. Join the mailing list and we'll notify you the moment new material is published.