Further research

Documentaries, Webinars & Podcasts

• Korean adoptees, Hana Crisp and Ryan Gustafsson, co-produce the podcast Adopted Feels which discusses the lives and experiences of intercountry adoptees.
• Relationship Matters Counselling and Mediation has created a series of webinars and education resources for the intercountry adoption community:
  • “Shame in the Context of Intercountry Adoption” Part 1 and Part 2
  • “Identity and Belonging – Parenting Intercountry Adopted Teens”
  • “An introduction to Loss and Grief and how this connects to Intercountry Adoption”
  • ”The Ugly Model: A documentary Q&A panel discussion featuring adult adoptees and ICAFSS Child and Family Counsellor”
  • “Recognise and repair – Addressing the uniqueness of adoptive parenting.”
• The BBC documentary “Meet me on the bridge: Discovering the truth about my parents after 20 years” follows the journey of Kati Pohler, a Chinese adoptee born under the One Child Policy, reuniting with her birth family.
• The documentary “Daughter from Danang” focuses on an adult adoptee who was adopted during Operation Babylift, Heidi Bub, reuniting with her birth family in Vietnam after being raised in the United States. The film follows the mixed emotions and culture shock of their meeting.
• The documentary Forget Me Not follows three young South Korean women staying at a shelter for unwed mothers as they make decisions about whether to keep their children or relinquish them for adoption.
• “The Good Problem” is a podcast developed by Leigh Matthews, and hosts several podcasts about intercountry adoption.

Articles, reports and books

• Patricia Fronek and Denise Cuthbert co-authored “The future of intercountry adoption: A paradigm shift for this century” for the International Journal of Social Welfare.
• The University of Sydney has published a series of articles regarding Taiwanese-Australian intercountry adoption:
  • Amy Conley Wright et al. “Narrating connection in intercountry adoption: Complexities of openness in Taiwan-Australia adoptions (PDF)” published in the International Journal of Social Welfare.
  • Jennifer Stoddart et al. “‘I’m the centre part of a Venn diagram’: Belonging and identity for Taiwanese-Australian intercountry adoptees (PDF)” published in Adoption and Fostering.
  • Ching-Hsuan Lin et al. “Changing nature of adoption and need for post-adoption services: Intercountry adoption practice in Taiwan and Australia” published in International Social Work.
• The book “The intercountry adoption debate: Dialogues across disciplines” includes a chapter by Patricia Fronek and Denise Cuthbert “Intercountry Adoption: Privilege, rights and social justice”.
• The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Office of Research published a report by Nigel Cantwell, “The Best Interests of the Child in Intercountry Adoption (PDF)”.
• “Operation Babylift” describes the Vietnam War airlift of nearly 2500 Vietnamese children evacuated from Saigon to the US, Canada, Europe and Australia.
  • “From Saigon in a shoebox: Australian ‘Operation Babylift’ orphans reflect 40 years on”, SBS News
  • “My Huong thought she’d finally found her mother. She was wrong.” ABC News
• InterCountry Adoptee Voices Research page provides a range of articles by and about intercountry adoptees worldwide.
• International Social Service has developed a working paper on Intrafamily Intercountry Adoptions: Upholding the Rights of the Child (PDF), which discusses matters of cross-border family placements and suggests solutions to meet the best interests of the child.
• The Department of Social Services has commissioned a number of research projects that examine aspects of intercountry adoption.

Developed by Government

• Australia’s history of intercountry adoption was discussed in the Standing Committee on Family and Human Services of the House of Representatives in 2005, and provides a thorough overview of past practices and trends.
• The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet prepared the “Report of the Interdepartmental Committee on Intercountry Adoption” in 2014, summarising the current status of intercountry adoption, stakeholder input, and directions for future reform.
•  The Department of Social Services website provides the Key policy documents for intercountry adoption in Australia.

Developed by the Permanent Bureau of the Hague on Private International Law

• “The Implementation and Operation of the 1993 Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention: Guide to Good Practice No. 1”, Permanent Bureau of the Hague
• “Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the 1993 Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention (PDF)”, Permanent Bureau of the Hague.
• “Information Brochure on the 1993 HCCH Intercountry Adoption Convention”, Permanent Bureau of the Hague
• “Hague Guidelines on Post-Adoption Services”, Permanent Bureau of the Hague
• “Accreditation and Adoption Accredited Bodies: General Principles and Guide to Good Practice No. 2”, Permanent Bureau of the Hague
• “Habitual Residence and Scope of the 1993 Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (PDF)”, Permanent Bureau of the Hague

Paid resources: research articles and books

There are a number of excellent paid resources available online and offline, including autobiographies, novels, children’s books and journal articles. Many of these resources can be found by using a brief keyword search in an internet search engine (e.g. Google). When using these resources please keep in mind that every adoption journey is different, some resources were produced a number of years ago, and rules relating to adoption vary greatly over time and between countries.

Listed below are some resources that may be of interest.

• The “The Colour of Difference: journeys in transracial adoption” was developed by The Benevolent Society’s Post Adoption Resource Centre and published in 2001.
  • A follow up publication, “The Colour of Time: A longitudinal exploration of the Impact of Intercountry Adoption in Australia” was developed in partnership between InterCountry Adoptee Voices, ISS Australia and the Benevolent Society’s Post Adoption Resource Centre and released in 2017. Funding was provided by the Department of Social Services.
• Kate Murphy, Sarah Pinto & Denise Cuthbert co-authored “‘These infants are future Australians’: making the nation through intercountry adoption” for the Journal of Australian Studies.
• The book “Adoption and Multiculturalism: Europe, the Americas and the Pacific” includes a chapter by Patricia Fronek and Indigo Willing “Cosmopolitanism, Transnationalism and Radicalised Belongings: A Study of Transnationally Adoptive Parents in Multicultural Australia.”
• International Social Work published the article “The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on intercountry adoption and international commercial surrogacy (PDF)” by Patricia Fronek and Karen Smith Rotabi.
• “Love Our Way: A Mother’s Story” by Julia Rollings, written about her experience of intercountry adoption from India.
• “The Gift of Adoption” by Anne Hutchison, written about her experience of intercountry adoption from the Philippines.

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