Advances in early childhood development

Early Childhood Matters aims to elevate key issues, spread awareness of promising solutions to support holistic child development and explore the elements needed to take those solutions to scale.

Featured articles

A ghost story

Michael Feigelson
Thomas and Paula with their 2 sons; newborn Milo and 5 year old Boris.

When she carried my baby, she carried me too

Elissa Strauss

How conversations over coffee reduced maternal mortality rates

Kesete Admasu
community centre Mama's Garden in Rotterdam

“We’re all trying to think about how care works”

Alison Gopnik

“When I hold their baby, I say a blessing for life”

Lama Abuarqoub et al.

Maintaining and celebrating rural indigenous practices in Brazilian cities

Melina Pereira

“Intergenerational housing is back”

Mariam Issoufou

Breaking the cycle of generational trauma before parenthood

Shauna M. Murray et al.

Family hubs change how children and caregivers experience parks in Jordan

Qasem Alrousan et al.
Browse articles

Early Childhood Matters 2025

The needs of parents and caregivers of young children often go unseen and unheard in public life and policy. They face growing pressure, are overworked, and their support systems are strained or disappearing. So what can we do to better support them? With 33 compelling contributions, this edition illustrates how everyone can play a role in shaping a more caring society and rebuilding villages of support around parents.

Read this issue Browse all issues

Early Childhood Matters is an annual periodical published by the Van Leer Foundation

Vision and objectives

Early Childhood Matters aims to elevate key issues, spread awareness of promising solutions to support holistic child development and explore the elements needed to take those solutions to scale.

Who it is for

It is written to be accessible to a broad international audience of policymakers, advocates, civil society organisations, civil servants, practitioners and researchers.

Learn more

Subscribe to Early Childhood Matters.

Sign up to be notified of the next edition

    Please fill in the information below. Mandatory fields are marked *

    [group digital]

    [/group]

    Specify your key areas of interest:

    See how we use your personal data by reading our privacy statement.

    Tell us a bit about yourself

    This information is for research purposes and will not be added to our mailing list or used to send you unsolicited mail unless you opt-in.

      See how we use your personal data by reading our privacy statement.

      Enjoy reading

      Thank you for downloading Early Childhood Matters.

      Download