The Bernard van Leer Foundation, established in 1949, is based in

the Netherlands. We actively engage in supporting early childhood

development activities in around 40 countries. Our income is derived

from the bequest of Bernard van Leer, a Dutch industrialist and

philanthropist, who lived from 1883 to 1958.

Our vision is of a world that respects the rights, dignity and equality of

children, their families and communities; a world that enables young

children to develop their innate potential to the full.

Our mission is to improve opportunities for vulnerable children

younger than eight years old, growing up in socially and economically

difficult circumstances.

Our experience, and that of our partners, supports our conviction that

families are, in principle, children’s first and best carers and teachers.

Children are part of a community and a wider social environment.

Each culture has a rich heritage to share and invaluable resources to pass

on to its children.

to creating opportunities for children and to shaping the prospects of society as a whole

Building on people’s strengths is a guiding principle in our work.

We therefore promote the development of local capacity, local

ownership and working in partnership.

We take a holistic approach to young children’s development, addressing

a range of issues that include education, health, and nutrition.

The Foundation also endeavours to strengthen the circles of support

around each child as well as advocating for young children’s rights and

for their voices to be heard.

We fulfil our mission through two interdependent strategies:

• Making grants and supporting programmes for culturally

and contextually appropriate approaches to early childhood

development;

• Sharing knowledge and expertise in early childhood development,

with the aim of informing and influencing policy and practice.

Programme development and grantmaking

The Bernard van Leer Foundation currently supports about 150 major

projects for young children in both developing and industrialised

countries. These projects operate in a variety of contexts, with a

rich diversity of approaches. Our funding is guided by geographical

priorities, but we also focus on specific themes. Projects are implemented

by local actors which may be public, private or community-based

organisations.

For information on our funding principles and criteria, please refer

to our website: www.bernardvanleer.org

We also have available a separate information sheet on funding.

Early Childhood Development is crucial

Among the groups of disadvantaged children we try to

reach, special attention is given to:

• children growing up in diverse and multicultural

societies;

• indigenous children;

• migrant, refugee or internally displaced children;

• children of single or teenage parents;

• children in conflict or disaster-stricken areas;

• children affected by hiv/aids.

The projects we support seek to improve the quality of

care and education for young children, by, for instance:

• focusing on the home environment and the

community;

• seeking to enhance parenting skills;

• upgrading the quality of early childhood development

programming;

• engaging in public education and advocacy on behalf

of vulnerable children.

Lasting benefits

Investing in young children, and strengthening the circles of support

around them, yields many lasting benefits:

• Children benefit through enhanced survival chances, better health,

improved social skills and school performance in later years, higher

self-esteem and a positive outlook.

• Parents and caregivers are able to strengthen their capacity to

support their children, and can enrich their own self-confidence

and motivation.

• For communities, the gains include greater self-reliance and

motivation to take on new tasks, and an improvement in the social

fabric of the community itself. This can provide a springboard for

wider social change and community development.

• For society at large, investing in early childhood can lead, in time,

to better performance in the school system, lower delinquency

rates, less need for welfare services, and a healthier and better

educated population that takes part in productive employment and

contributes to the development of society.

Sharing knowledge in early childhood development

Knowledge-sharing can help to inform policy and promote best practice,

as well as supporting partner organisations who act as advocates on

behalf of young children and their families.

Documenting, learning and communicating are integral to all that

we do. We are committed to systematically sharing the rich variety

of knowledge, know-how and lessons learned that emerge from the

projects and networks we support. We also encourage and support our

partners to document and disseminate their own experience.

Our Resource Centre houses an early childhood development library

as well as a collection of programme-related materials. Visits by

appointment are welcomed.

Photos courtesy of: César Vigo Vargas, Jim Holmes, Paula Nimpuno-Parente, Parke Wayiswa,

Sevil Üzrek, Colin Nicholas, Raúl Martínez de Cevallos and María Angelica Kotliarenco

© Bernard van Leer Foundation.

Design and production: Homemade Cookies BV, The Hague, The Netherlands 04/03

Publications

We facilitate and create a variety of products for different audiences

about work in the field of early childhood development. We analyse and

distil the lessons learned, disseminating these to practitioners, trainers,

academics and policy makers. Our products include books, periodicals,

visual documentation, and the website.

A list of our publications is available on request, or on our website:

www.bernardvanleer.org

Contact details

The Bernard van Leer Foundation

P.O. Box 82334, 2508 EH The Hague

Visiting address: Eisenhowerlaan 156

The Netherlands

Telephone +31 (070) 331 22 00

Fax +31 (070) 350 23 73

E-mail: registry@bvleerf.nl

Children hold the key to the future