Early Childhood Matters 2025

We need to talk about care and what parents need for a good start.

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, the journal illustrates how everyone can play a role in shaping a more caring society and rebuilding villages of support around parents.

Guided by those already leading the way, from neuroscientists to poets, and architects to trauma specialists, this issue offers bold, practical solutions that meaningfully support mothers, fathers and other caregivers, and the children they care for.

Because when we value and celebrate care, we create ripple effects that strengthen families, communities and societies for generations.

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Introduction

What do parents and other caregivers need for a good start?

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

Understanding human connection

Insights on parental wellbeing from science and cultural practices

“Love really protects you, the parent and the baby”

Ruth Feldman

“Dad brain” is real

Darby Saxbe

Helping parents “dance” with their children

Kaili Clackson et al.

It’s not so easy to be a “good enough parent”

Dana Shai

How conversations over coffee reduced maternal mortality rates

Kesete Admasu

Parenting begins in pregnancy

Catherine Monk

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

Sarah Blaffer Hrdy

Maintaining and celebrating rural indigenous practices in Brazilian cities

Melina Pereira
Thomas and Paula with their 2 sons; newborn Milo and 5 year old Boris.

“The more we give ourselves, the more we have to give others”

Kristin Neff

Finding sanity in ancient ritual

Elissa Strauss
Thomas and Paula with their 2 sons; newborn Milo and 5 year old Boris.

“It would have been very strange not to write about such a revealing, transformative experience”

Alejandro Zambra

The power of awe in early parenthood

Dacher Keltner
community centre Mama's Garden in Rotterdam

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

Alison Gopnik

Rebuilding villages of support

Ideas and initiatives that consider care for parents and caregivers

Five urban design choices that make a world of difference for parents

Sree Kumar Kumaraswamy et al.

How Arab cities in Israel are recreating a sense of connection

Noor Korabi

“Intergenerational housing is back”

Mariam Issoufou

Family hubs change how children and caregivers experience parks in Jordan

Qasem Alrousan et al.

How to transform public spaces to encourage intergenerational play

Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority

Ask a parent: How are you?

Libby Kahn

How black women reclaimed care in São Paulo

Ana Carolina Barros Silva et al.

A place for dads to feel safe and ask questions

Rich Felisia

Good housing can make parenting less lonely

Dinah Bornat et al.

Caring connections

Isolde Woudstra
Career or family. Woman with stroller and businesswoman with documents on scales. Comparing entrepreneurship with motherhood. Girl with life balance. Cartoon vector illustration

When work works for parents and families, everybody wins

Brigid Schulte

Taking care of business by taking care of parents

Erik Manfrim et al.

Collective approaches to healing

Finding a way forward together

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

Lama Abuarqoub et al.

Protecting children begins with healing parents

Alicia Lieberman
Thomas and Paula with their 2 sons; newborn Milo and 5 year old Boris.

“I learned a lot about trauma through parenting”

Bessel van der Kolk

Breaking the cycle of generational trauma before parenthood

Shauna M. Murray et al.

Healing the past to protect the future

Andrés Moya et al.

Becoming a parent with the legacy of civil war

Abdulai Jawo Bah et al.

Issue Colophon

Advisory Board: Michael Feigelson, CEO, Van Leer Foundation
 Advisory Board: Tanmoy Goswami, Creator of Sanity
Advisory Board: Uzodinma Iweala, writer, medical doctor, & immediate former CEO of The Africa Center
 Advisory Board: Lucy Jones, Author of Matrescence
 Advisory Board: Shankar Maruwada, Co-Founder & CEO at EkStep Foundation
 Advisory Board: Sarah Smith, Director, Legacy Initiatives, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
 Managing editor: Charlotte Davidi
 Guest editor: Elissa Strauss
 Contributing editors: Hannah Rothschild and Andrew Wright
 Text editing: Margaret Mellor
 Design: Hallo Mondo
 Portrait illustrations: Cléa Dieudonné
 Section illustrations: Annelien Smet
 Social media & press consultant: Shaun Lavelle
 Communication: Alexis Camejo
 Online platform: Made for the World

Social media package

We hope that this issue of Early Childhood Matters is a valuable resource for you, and encourage you to share with your network. Here is a social media toolkit with ready-to-share sample messages tailored for you.

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