As the door of 2007 slams shut with the painful closing of Guatemalan adoption (some believe temporary, others permanent), adoptive families search for answers on what exactly 2008 holds in store for International Adoption. With many major adoption websites painting a dark and fuzzy picture, it is important for prospective adoptive families to seek and find the facts in this developing puzzle.

Some facts have shown 2007 to be one of the most volatile years in US adoption history:

• Russian adoption essentially closed to adoption and only recently re-opened by accrediting a few fortunate adoption agencies.
• Ukraine announced that it will process only 460 adoption dossiers for 2008, with a heavy focus on placing sibling groups and children over the age of 10-years.
• Adoptions from China , the No. 1 source country since 2000, fell to 5,453, down by 1,040 from last year and well off the peak of 7,906 in 2005. The main factor behind this is simply China 's much more stringent adoption policy of excluding singles, homosexuals and those whose weight falls in the obese level. In addition, China's waiting time has increased to an average of 24 months

Over all Adoption Statistics have shown a "startling" decrease in International Adoption of 15% from 2006 to 2007 in the USA. Scary times in international adoption, yes?

Maybe not . Maybe, we're all hitting the panic button prematurely. The truth is, International Adoption is a dynamic process. In the big picture, there are other facts that must be considered:

• From 1997 to 2007, International adoption increased by 27% overall.
• Placing countries change due to politics, economic advancement, and acceptance of differing parenting situations (specifically: single parents).
• The promotion of domestic adoption, whether within the USA to potential US-adoptive parents, or within popular placing countries to their own general populace, creates an increase in adoption placements in-country' for the placing-country.

The decrease in adoptions from China and Russia, the top two placing countries, fail to emphasize that China's adoption focus has strongly switched from placing healthy infants, to placing special needs and older children, and the criteria for adoptive parents has narrowed considerably, with no decrease in the adoption applications made to this placing country.

In addition, Russia's changing policies on International Adoption have caused an uneven flow of placements from that country for many years. 2007 was no exception, with a virtual freeze on adoptions for most of the year and only a very recent re-accreditation of a few agencies.

South Korea is the leading example of a Best Case Scenario change in the world of intercountry adoption. Unlike countries such as Romania that slow down or close to international adoption due to current politics or national hysteria towards intercountry adoption without providing any type of support or solution to the growing orphaned population of children, South Korea has instigated a well-thought-out plan to decrease adoptions outside of its borders by promoting and supporting domestic adoption of its children. Korean adoption to the USA decreased 32% in 2007, placing only 939 children as compared to 1,376 in 2006. This decrease was expected and applauded by professionals in both countries. South Korea began placing infants with US families over 50 years ago, when it was a war-torn and impoverished nation. In the 21st century, South Korea is recognized as a leading economic, education and political force in Asia . Their promotion of adoption within their own population has shifted the availability of children for international adoption, to adoption within South Korea .

2008: A Look Ahead

This year brings new challenges for adoptive parents, placing countries and the adoption agencies that provide services to both. Pre-adoptive parents must contend with questions such as, " What is the Hague Adoption Convention and how will it effect our adoption?" and "Which adoption agency will increase our chances of bringing a child home?"

Basically, Hague Adoption Convention (HAC) is a multilateral treaty designed to protect children, birth parents and adoptive parents from shady practices, including hidden fees, bribery, and child abduction. Each nation names a central authority In the US, that means the State Department to establish ethical practices, require accreditation for the agencies handling the adoptions, maintain a registry to track complaints and create a system for decertifying agencies that do not meet the standards.

In addition, once the HAC is fully enacted on April 1, 2008 , parents seeking a visa for an overseas adoption must demonstrate to the State Department that a child has been properly cleared for adoption, that a local placement had been considered, and that the birth parents were counseled on their decision and have signed consent forms.

In plain English: The entire International Adoption process is about to undergo big changes. Some of which follow:

Good Changes :

• Some changes, like mandatory training for parents concerning the common physical and emotional condition of orphans, represent good changes. Parents need proper preparation in a formal manner to truly understand the challenges that sometimes come with adopting a child from an institutional setting.
• Children are protected from some of the most malicious practices currently seen in the adoption world.
• Adoption Agencies placing children from countries that have ratified The Hague must be fully accredited, overseen, and follow a mandated standard set of practices. Adoptive families will have a greater protection within the new system than ever before.

Not so Good Changes:

• With bureaucracies in the US and the placing countries expanding to meet the requirements of the treaty, and adoption agencies incurring new requirements on staff training, parent-education, record-keeping, and international oversight, it's a sure bet the expenses related to international adoption are about to go up. Maybe way, way up.
• New requirements, both within the USA and the sending-countries where the children reside, must be ironed out. Delays are sure to happen. While difficult for parents waiting to adopt, delays in the adoption of childrenperhaps months or even years in some cases, have no positive outcome. For some special needs children needing life-saving surgery, the wait may simply be too long. For others, the potential for mental or physical abuse multiplies each day they remain institutionalized.
• A number of adoption agencies that have assisted children for decades through special needs advocacy, caretaker and nutritional support and other humanitarian efforts, will no longer exist. Offering low adoption fees and using all profits to support the care of children who will never be adopted, these good agencies will close their doors due to the inability financially cover the costs of hiring new staff and processing the paperwork needed to meet new requirements. The loss to the adoption community is very sad. The loss to the children they were able to help, is simply devastating.

International adoption is not truly on the decline, nor is the HAC perfectly formed. Changes are in the making, and fluctuation in the number of adopted children yearly is to be expected. Russia is carefully watching over their newly implemented process, which will release thousands of waiting children to families ready and willing to adopt them. And while China's restrictions will continue to limit the number of children who find families internationally, other countries such as Ethiopia, increased a startling 42% in placements to the USA in 2007.

Looking ahead, 2008 holds great challenges for everyone involved with bringing families together through adoption. Advocates everywhere agree that a standards-of-practice in the placement of children for adoption internationally has been needed for years. This year, that standard will finally be observed by all countries that have entered into the HAC. What we all must remember is exactly who the HAC was created to help: orphaned, homeless, children . To do so, we must protect the waiting children, while not over-burdening the families who wish to cherish and raise them as their own. The balance is essential. Thousands of children depend on families, advocates, agencies, and governments to reach that balance and keep it.

2008 is the year we will keep our promise to the children, birthparents, adoptive parents and caretakers. To do anything else is simply not an option.