Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University

Children’s biological systems begin adapting to their environments in their earliest days, even before birth. These “molecular memories” shape children’s immune and cardiovascular systems, among others, well into adulthood. When we improve the environments around young children and pregnant people, we are not only supporting a child’s development but also their lifelong health. #PlaceMatters To learn more, check out our working paper, “Place Matters: The Environment We Create Shapes the Foundations of Healthy Development” https://bit.ly/3ZtjEWK

It’s back to school time! 📚 Did you know health and learning are deeply interconnected? A child’s earliest experiences are critical for both brain development and the healthy development of their biological systems, including the immune and cardiovascular systems. 📽️ To learn more about the connection between health and learning, watch the full video here: https://lnkd.in/ew-cyn_H

Science X Design (pronounced “science by design”) aims to empower service providers in healthcare, education, and child welfare to identify new opportunities to improve their services. Through an interactive learning, listening, and synthesis process, you will identify ways to adapt your early childhood program to support the healthy development of young children and their caregivers. Check it out here: https://bit.ly/2YvnxwC.

Our Chief Science Officer, Dr. Lindsey Burghardt, was recently interviewed in the Detroit Bridge about the impact of hot classrooms on children’s learning and health. Dr. Burghardt emphasizes that investing in strategies to cool classrooms can have outsized positive impacts on children’s learning, mental health, and physical health. You can read the article here: https://bit.ly/3XfPFTa 📚 And if you want to learn more about the effects of extreme heat on early childhood development, check out this brief: https://bit.ly/3zdEKkU

As the new school year starts, extreme heat is affecting children in classrooms across the country. Our Chief Science Officer, Dr. Lindsey Burghardt, talked with CBS News Chicago about heat in schools and the importance of reducing children's exposure to extreme heat:

Last December, we hosted “Understanding Racism’s Impact on Child Development: Working Towards Fairness of Place in the United States.” During this webinar, our panel of experts explored how racism gets “under the skin” to impact children’s development and how it contributes to unequal access to opportunity in the places where children live, grow, play, and learn. Panelists explored ways to dismantle systemic barriers and work toward solutions that promote healthy child development. Check out the webinar here: https://bit.ly/3S3NIXj And the podcast adaption of the webinar here: https://bit.ly/42UT3FJ

Contaminants in drinking water can affect early childhood development. Exposure to lead in early childhood, for example, is associated with behavioral and cognitive impairments. Enriched educational opportunities and supportive relationships may help reduce harm to children already exposed to lead, but it is critical that we prevent future exposure and ensure all children have access to clean, affordable water. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gi9bKdSJ

Structural inequities – created by historic discrimination and current practices – impose substantial hardships on families of color raising young children. To improve environmental conditions around children and their caregivers, we need a coordinated, community-informed strategy that goes beyond the traditional boundaries of early childhood policy. Read more here: https://bit.ly/3ZtjEWK

Our Chief Science Officer, Lindsey Burghardt, MD, MPH, FAAP, sat down with Data-Smart City Solutions to discuss how we can collectively provide caregiving for children by implementing policies that improve their developmental environments, including policies that reduce and prevent exposure to extreme heat during pregnancy and early childhood. 🎧 Listen here: https://bit.ly/3WS4Pht

When we think about solutions and actions to support early childhood development, it's not just what we do or whether we do it, but when we step in to support children that is important.