Ideas and action that advance the early years

Our latest journal

The Wellbeing Issue: Part III

What if our most advanced problem-solving system has been with us all along? Parents.

In a rapidly changing world full of uncertainty, parents are pros at responding to constant change. They are the most resourceful people on the planet, finding new ways to cope and care.

But this transition to parenthood is chronically undersupported. Like any critical infrastructure, we need to invest in parents, especially as the pace of change moves faster than existing support.

That’s why Early Childhood Matters 2026, “Parenthood in a Changing World”, continues to focus on parental wellbeing. Bringing together perspectives from scientists, economists, artists, innovators, and leaders across government and civil society, the case for investing in parents is beautifully obvious.

Featured stories

Editor’s pick
  • Parenthood & Caregiving

Why Africa could lead a wave of care innovation

A journey of caregiving from Lagos to Florida fuels my vision

Spotlight
  • Parenthood & Caregiving

“I built my own AI model specifically to help me parent my son”

Every new technology brings controversy and concern about how it might impact on children’s development

  • Health & Wellbeing

Who nourishes the mother?

My mission to nurture families through healthy meals across Brazil

  • Environment & Cities

How pregnancy rewired my relationship with nature

From a mother’s ritual to a child’s inheritance: the power of everyday green

The latest from our podcast

When a baby is born, a parent is born too. But what if that's more than a metaphor?

Birth of a Parent explores the emerging science of how parenthood transforms the human mind. Host Michael Feigelson speaks with leading scientists, writers, and thinkers to investigate whether becoming a parent is one of life's most profound—and least understood—developmental stages.

Listen now

A Human Metamorphosis with Oren Harman

A Human Metamorphosis with Oren Harman

Three quarters of animal species undergo metamorphosis. Why are we so sure humans don't? Historian of science Oren Harman takes us from butterflies to starfish in search of an answer, and toward a surprising way of thinking about what happens when a baby turns someone into a parent.

The Mom Brain Revolution with Susana Carmona

The Mom Brain Revolution with Susana Carmona

For centuries, scientists studied what pregnancy does to the body. Almost nobody studied what it does to the brain. Neuroscientist Susana Carmona helped change that, uncovering evidence that motherhood reshapes the human brain in ways scientists are only beginning to understand.

Discover collections

Our collections bring together ideas and voices on child development and parent wellbeing across past journals to spark curiosity and collaborative thinking.

Browse all collections

New to Early Childhood Matters?

8 stories
Our most popular articles and interviews with leaders have ignited new conversations and led to change for the early years.
Thomas and Paula with their 2 sons; newborn Milo and 5 year old Boris.

How caregiving shapes leadership

8 stories
The experience of becoming a parent or caring for a child can transform our worldview and purpose. These leaders share their own stories with the hope of inspiring others.

What happens when we become a parent

The latest science and evidence on a window of human development that we are only beginning to understand.
Spotlight
  • Childhood & Development
  • Parenthood & Caregiving

“Becoming a parent is a developmental process.”

Do we become a parent when a child is born, or long before that, when the prospect of parenthood first takes shape?

Available Languages Available in:

Editor’s pick
  • Parenthood & Caregiving

Pregnancy changes women’s brains profoundly

Neuroscience completely overlooked motherhood but now that’s changing

Editor’s pick
  • Parenthood & Caregiving

Biological changes help men prepare for fatherhood

Male care is part of how and why humans thrived as a species

  • Parenthood & Caregiving

"מוח של אבא" באמת קיים

מחקרים חדשים מספרים לנו על תקופת המעבר לאבהות, ולְמה אבות זקוקים

Spotlight
  • Health & Wellbeing

ההורות מתחילה כבר בהיריון

המדע מסביר מדוע אנחנו זקוקים לגישה דו-דורית לרווחה

  • Health & Wellbeing

"האהבה מגינה גם על ההורה וגם על התינוק"

ריאיון עם פרופ' רות פלדמן ראשת המרכז לחקר המוח והתפתחות האדם באוניברסיטת רייכמן

  • Parenthood & Caregiving

כדי להגן על הילדים, צריך קודם כל לרפא את ההורים

מודל הטיפול בהורה וילד עוזר להורים להפוך את הפחד לאהבה

  • Parenthood & Caregiving

הורות משנה את המוח

הבנה של "תקופת המעבר לאימהות" יכולה לעצב מחדש את האופן שבו אנחנו דואגים למטפלות בתינוקות רכים

  • Parenthood & Caregiving

“I wanted to understand the evolution of man-the-nurturer”

Interview with Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, Author of Father Time: A Natural History of Men and Babies

  • Health & Wellbeing

"ככל שניתן יותר לעצמנו, כך נוכל לתת יותר לאחרים"

ריאיון עם כריסטן נף מחברת הספר Self-compassion: The proven power of being kind to yourself

  • Policy & Practice

"האי-שוויון הגדל מרחיב את פער ההורות"

ריאיון עם פבריציו ציליבוטי, מחבר שותף של הספר Love, Money & Parenting: How Economics Explains the Way We Raise Our Kids (אהבה, כסף והורות: איך הכלכלה משפיעה על אופן גידול הילדים)

Spotlight
  • Health & Wellbeing

שירי ערש מרגיעים מתחים אצל ההורים

מה היה קורה אילו כל משפחה הייתה יוצרת לעצמה שיר ערש מקורי משלה?

Download the full digital journals
Get curated monthly stories in your inbox
First access to new stories
Invitations to events and talks

Connect with our global community

Expand your network with innovators leading change for babies, toddlers and their caregivers.

Question? Ask ECM
Early Childhood Matters
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.