Early Childhood Matters 2020

"[COVID-19] is making young children around the world more vulnerable and affecting all areas of their development. The pandemic has also showcased how quickly a range of stakeholders can adapt, with empathy, agility and creativity."

This edition of Early Childhood Matters, the Bernard van Leer Foundation (BvLF)'s annual journal, spotlights projects, programmes, and policies that seek to address challenges impacting babies, toddlers, and their caregivers - particularly those due to COVID-19. According to BvLF, the pandemic has underlined gaps between communities, cities, regions, and nation states. Approximately 22 million children have been displaced by various crisis situations, and 250 million children are living in urban areas in developing countries are at risk of not attaining their developmental potential. Thus, the journal features calls to action from global leaders and experts to ensure that young children, families, frontline workers, and cities continue to thrive: "To shape a better future, investing in early childhood needs to remain a priority for all governments and societies."

The 33 articles include:

EDITORIAL: Rising to the Challenges of Today by Investing in the Early Years for the Present and Future - Cecilia Vaca Jones

LEADERSHIP - BvLF asserts that the ability to mobilise people to solve problems collectively is crucial to achieving results for young children. In this section, leaders from local and national government, civil society, and academia discuss their work in acting across sectors, between different levels of government, and with varied strategic stakeholders to pursue social protection for children and shape the future of early childhood. Articles include:

• The COVID-19 Pandemic and Childhood in Latin America and the Caribbean - Laura Chinchilla Miranda
• Inter-sectoral Work in Public Policy in Colombia as a Poverty Reduction Strategy - Constanza Alarcón Párraga
• Investing in Evidence to Achieve Health Equity for Refugee Children - Tala Al-Rousan, Cheryl A.M. Anderson, and Princess Dina Mired of Jordan
• Returning the City to Children - Erion Veliaj
• Boa Vista, the Early Childhood Capital, Faces Prejudice and Covid-19 - Teresa Surita

SCALING: There are multiple pathways to take a small programme and make it work for many more children. In this section, practitioners and policymakers explore issues related to scale, such as coordination, financing, training, and monitoring and learning, with many of the articles touching on the unique challenges and new opportunities created by the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, this section highlights the importance of incorporating mental health as a priority policy in early childhood health and care systems (see also the video below). It also includes a comparative analysis of interventions BvLF has implemented in 4 cities to ensure that urban design and planning incorporate actions that foster equity, inclusion, and the well-being and quality of life of babies, toddlers, and their families. Articles include:

• Jamii ni Afya: Using Digital Tools to Scale Integrated Services to Mothers and Children in Zanzibar - Kim Wilson, Allyson Nelson, Taylor Craig, Rachel Hofmann, and Erica Layer
• Perinatal Depression in Chile: Advances and Challenges - Matías Irarrázaval
• Mental Health and Learning: BRAC's Response in Bangladesh during COVID-19 - Jahanara Ahmad, Erum Mariam, Bushra Humaira Sadaf, Sarwat Sarah Sarwar, Shaheen Nafisa Siddique, and Syeda Sazia Zaman
• Scaling Early Childhood Services in Cities: Lessons from Four Urban95 Case Studies - Jennifer Widner and Savvas Verdis
• Supporting Children to Grow Smarter, Not Just Taller: Here's How - Elizabeth L. Prado, Leila M. Larson, and Anuraj H. Shankar
• Identity Matters: Addressing Inequity Starts in Early Childhood - Zarlasht Halaimzai
• Business Matters: Engaging the Private Sector to Give Young Children a Healthy Start in Life - Lawrence Haddad
• Improving Child Outcomes in Egypt through Blended Training and Community Awareness - Abla Al-Alfy
• Scaling-up Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Preschool Education in Odisha - Anu Garg, Aravind Agarwal, R.R. Nayak, and Priyadarsini Mohanty

INNOVATIONS: This section focuses on new or emerging programmes, policies, or services that have the potential to meet the needs of young children and their caregivers - e.g., by working with ethnic minorities and highly vulnerable groups in ways that promote fairness and inclusion. Some authors discuss how service providers responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by finding solutions, including the use of new technologies, to minimise interruptions to vital services and gaps in access to information and knowledge. Articles include:

• CanalCanoa: Strengthening Indigenous Values to Improve Early Childhood Development - Kurt Shaw and Rita de Cácia Oenning da Silva
• A Pragmatic Approach to Expanding Access to Quality Early Learning for South Africa's Poorest Children - Carley Furness-Symms, Tressa Johnson, and Grace Matlhape
• How Maternal Depression and Behaviours Impact Child Health and Development - Erin Pfeiffer
• The 'Village' Project: Towards Early Learning Communities - Giorgio Tamburlini, Anduena Alushaj, and Francesca Vezzini
• OneSky: Blended Learning for Home-based Childcare Providers in Vietnam - Alice Wong and Tim Huang
• Strategic Foresight and the Post-COVID Future of Early Childhood - Joe Waters
• Adapting Service Delivery to Reach Marginalised Women and Children in Urban Areas - Folake Olayinka and Chloe Manchester
• Rotterdam Research Will Inform Decisions on Future Pandemic Lockdowns - Vincent Jaddoe
• Planning Play for 1.1 Million Babies: Istanbul95 - Selva Gürdogan
• How COVID-19 Accelerated Change: Innovations in Working with Parents in Israel - Maya Yaari and Idit Schuman-Adatto

GLOBAL IMPRESSIONS: The articles in this section highlight initiatives, resources, and approaches that have inspired BvLF over the last year; they include:

• Building Early Childhood Systems - Sharon Lynn Kagan and Caitlin M. Dermody
• Stigmatised and Unsupported: The Double Tragedy of Children with Incarcerated Parents - Rose Atieno Opiyo
• The Beginning of Life 2 - Outside: New Documentary Promotes Children's Engagement with Nature - Laís Fleury
• Climate Change and Early Childhood Development: Finding the Synergies - Carlos Dora
• Streets as Assets in the COVID-19 Pandemic Response and Recovery - Skye Duncan
• Help or Hindrance? The Impact of Gig Work on Caregiving - Emma Samman and Abigail Hunt
• Towards a Reminist Childcare Recovery - Elliot Haspel