Despite a strong evidence base and understanding of the holistic needs of young children, few ECD interventions have been equitably and sustainably scaled and progress towards child development related SDGs is slow. Systems disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and other converging crises have created additional challenges in achieving SDG 4.2.1. In this webinar we will explore whether these disruptions might also present an opportunity to do things differently, through systems innovations to address longstanding challenges in ECD. Specifically we will consider what we might learn from application of systems thinking to tackle challenges of scale, sustainability and equity in ECD.
Systems thinking describes a way of conceptualising real-world phenomena to improve understanding of a whole, its component parts and the interconnections between them. In 2022 ECDAN, the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI), and the Harvard School of Public Health conducted a systematic evidence review in order to understand the lessons learned from other sectors in applying systems thinking and how it may be applied to ECD.
Join us to learn about our key takeaways from this evidence review and explore its potential implications for ECD with a distinguished panel, including:
Dr. Ashish KC; Uppsala University and University of Gothenburg, Sweden
Prof. Gary Darmstadt; Stanford University, USA
Dr. Peter Waiswa; Makerere University Uganda
Dr. Phuong Hong Nguyen; International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
Prof. Rafael Pérez-Escamilla; Yale School of Public Health, USA
Dr. Kate Milner, Paediatrician and Research Lead, Royal Children’s Hospital, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Australia
Shekufeh Zonji, Global Technical Lead, Early Child Development Action Network
The session will be chaired by Professor Sharon Goldfeld (MCRI).