Last night, the 23rd selection for Woman of the Year took place on the Oleander terrace of the Esplanade Hotel, with the title awarded to Prof. Dr. Gordana Buljan Flander, clinical psychologist and psychotherapist.
Prof. Dr. Gordana Buljan Flander is the director of the Children’s Protection Clinic of the City of Zagreb and has been working for over thirty years in the protection of children and their rights. As a child psychologist at the Children’s Hospital in Zagreb, she often encountered abused and neglected children who lacked the necessary protection from adults. Therefore, she was among the first to recognize this issue in Croatia in the early nineties and dedicated her further work to it. She is the founder of the advisory line for abused and neglected children, “Brave Phone,” and the initiator of the establishment of the Children’s and Youth Protection Clinic of the City of Zagreb, which has been recognized by the Council of Europe as a model of good practice and presented at the UN.
“Thank you very much to the magazine Zaposlena for the recognition, but also for the nomination. When I saw the names of the nominees, I felt honored to be among such wonderful, valuable, and successful women; I congratulate everyone from the heart. For me, this recognition means an opportunity for many people to hear once again that child suffering exists, that we must not turn our heads away from it, but react and protect children, as well as praise and thank my team at the Children’s and Youth Protection Clinic of the City of Zagreb for 15 years of strength and dedication in working with over 17,000 children and families. This is also an opportunity for me to say THANK YOU to everyone who lives this path with me. Finally, I want to tell all young women: Live what you do and do what you live; I am sure you will feel rewarded,” said Prof. Dr. Gordana Buljan Flander after receiving the award.
