Amy Conley Wright
Dr Amy Conley Wright, BA, MSW, PhD, is Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Sydney and Director of the Institute of Open Adoption Studies. There she leads a program of applied research focused primarily on building the evidence about children and their best interests in open adoption and other permanency pathways in out-of-home care.
A key focus is the active exchange of research findings into policy and practice through substantial engagement with policy makers, practitioners, judiciary and people with lived experience in out-of-home care and adoption.
Current projects focus on family contact for children in permanent care, support for cultural identity development, evaluation of Family Group Conferencing and carer recruitment and training.
In collaboration with National Taiwan University, she is conducting research exploring interest in connection to culture and family of origin in the context of intercountry adoption, from the perspectives of adult adopted persons, adoptive parents, birth mothers and adoption professionals. She has published three books as well as authored more than 20 peer-reviewed journal articles and numerous commissioned research reports, on topics including child advocacy, family support and disability. Her work has been recognised as influencing child and family services in the U.S., Australia, Romania and other countries.
Title of presentation: Fostering family connections: Practices for open adoption and permanent care
Abstract: Adoption is a contentious issue in Australia due to a difficult history of coercion and secrecy related to past adoption practices, including the Stolen Generations of Indigenous Children and Forced Adoptions for children of unwed mothers. Adoptions peaked in the 1970s, and declined until recently, when open adoption from out-of-home care was legislated in the state of New South Wales. Openness in adoption is an expectation for Australian domestic adoption, and adoption orders feature contact plans outlining visitation with birth relatives. Progress toward openness in intercountry adoption is slower, without explicit expectations, though many adoptive families seek support for reunions. This presentation will draw on several related research studies, using a range of methods including case file review, arts-based methods, and interviews, to highlight experiences of contact in open adoption and other forms of permanent care, from the perspective of children, adoptive parents and birth parents, including benefits and barriers. These lived experiences inspired the development of an Australian Research Council funded project, ‘Fostering lifelong connections for children in permanent care.’ The project aims to promote practice change in the out-of-home care sector, by translating research into specific casework practices to keep children connected to their birth families. A particular focus is learning from Aboriginal families and communities about how to maintain children’s connection to Kin and country. The process of initiating this project will be shared, and future plans for developing, evaluating and disseminating practices will be highlighted.
