International adoption must be part of the solution for the world's orphaned and abandoned children, says Craig Juntunen, founder of the Both Ends Burning campaign.

"It is time for some child advocacy organizations to stop calling international adoption the 'last resort,'" Juntunen said. "For many of these children, intercountry adoption is the 'best resort.'"

"My fear is that many of these children will be left behind -- neglected -- by the narrow-minded agendas of special interest groups," he said. "When it comes to the best interests of a child, there is not a one-size-fits-all solution."

Many children are left to fend for themselves in fourth-world environments that cannot meet their basic needs: safe drinking water, food, shelter, clothing, health care, education and security, he said. "Neglect is as bad as abuse," he said. "We all need to open our eyes to the dire situation facing these children today."

In many cases, the best answer for an orphaned children is to remain in-country if there is a chance they can be re-united with parents. When efforts to find immediate family members fail, international adoption must be viewed as part of the solution.

Juntunen believes labeling intercountry adoption as a "last resort" is an insult to the thousands of American families who have opened their homes to orphaned children from around the world. "I have firsthand experience with this, as my wife Kathi and I adopted our three children from Haiti," he said. "I live this experience day in and day out ... I know international adoption works."

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"We believe in these kids. Each has a unique set of skills and talents, but these skills and talents need to be cultivated, or they atrophy and the child falls into survival mode," says Craig Juntunen, founder of the Both Ends Burning campaign. "Our responsibility to the children of the world is to prevent their lives from being reduced to survival. The mission of Both Ends Burning is to support orphaned children by finding them a family and a place to call home -- enabling them to transcend survival and actualize the individual greatness within them."

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Given current conditions in Haiti, it makes sense to halt adoptions there temporarily. But if adoptions remain on hold indefinitely, "We will see the creation of a new generation of victims from this disaster," said Craig Juntunen, founder of the Both Ends Burning campaign. "As Haiti is rebuilt, the moratorium on adoptions should be lifted as soon as possible."

Every effort should be made to reunite separated children in Haiti with their biological parents. But when those efforts come up short, international adoption must be considered as the best option. It would be wonderful if other families in Haiti would adopt them, but is that a realistic expectation given the situation there?

International adoption is not an orphan's last resort, as some organizations have described it; the last resort is institutionalized care. Far too many orphaned children are wasting away their childhoods in substandard group homes. Studies show that children in even the best institutions run higher risks of death, disease and damaged intellectual and emotional capabilities.

"International adoption works – my family and I are proof of that," said Juntunen, who with his wife Kathi adopted three children from Haiti in 2006. "Now I am leading a campaign to call attention to the need for reforming the current system. The mission of the campaign is to bring more orphaned and abandoned children into families where they are loved and enabled to reach their full potential."

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