Núcleo Ciência Pela Infância
Alexandra Brentani
Faculdade de Medicina - USP
Naercio Menezes Filho
Centro de Políticas Públicas – Insper
Introduction
Núcleo Ciência Pela Infância seeks to leverage scientific
knowledge to inform new strategies that will improve
well-being and life outcomes for vulnerable children and
support sustainable social and economic development in
Brazil.
Introduction
•
Healthy child development is the foundation of strong
communities, economic prosperity, and a just society
•
A rapidly growing, multi-disciplinary body of scientific
evidence shows that early experiences are built into the
body and affect biological systems that can influence
learning, behavior, and health across the lifespan.
•
New knowledge & advances in the behavioral and social
sciences -> new opportunities for more effective strategies
to address unmet challenges in education, economic
development, health promotion, and social welfare.
A dynamic partnership
Goals
Building a unified science of child development to explain
the early roots of lifelong health, learning, and behavior in Brazil;
Translating and communicating science effectively to
inform the public discourse around issues that affect children and
families; and
Preparing leaders to leverage the science of healthy
development in the design and implementation of innovative
policies and programs that reduce preventable disparities and
promote greater well-being for all Brazilian children.
Core program activities
1. Building a Brazilian scientific community to address early
childhood development
2. Translating the science for non-scientific audiences
3. Shaping public discourse
4. Building leadership capacity and catalyzing innovative policies
and programs
Building a Brazilian scientific community
to address early childhood development
• Identify the strengths and gaps in the existing body of
knowledge
• Build a scientific consensus around topics that have the
potential to be applied in policy and practice
• Promote a national research agenda to address underexplored
areas.
• Ongoing exchange of faculty and students between Brazilian
universities and Harvard University
Translating the science for non-scientific
audiences
• A large-scale research project to develop a deep understanding
of the cultural models that shape how Brazilians think about
child development
• Use this understanding to develop and test effective ways to
communicate the science of child development to expand
support for more effective policies and programs in Brazil
Translating the science for non-scientific
audiences
• A team of Brazilian researchers is engaged in a large-scale
research project to develop a deep understanding of the
cultural models that shape how Brazilians think about child
development
• Develop and test effective ways to communicate the science of
child development to expand support for more effective
policies and programs in Brazil.
• Draw on the expertise of the Frameworks Institute, an
independent nonprofit communications research organization
and long-time strategic partner of the Center on the
Developing Child.
Shaping public discourse
Producing a wide range of publications and educational media
that give Brazilian policymakers, practitioners, and the general
public multiple ways to engage with and understand the science
of early childhood development.
INSERT: SUPER CEREBRO
Shaping public discourse
• The translated science forms the basis of a wide range of
publications and educational media that give Brazilian
policymakers, practitioners, and the general public multiple
ways to engage with and understand the science of early
childhood development.
• This dissemination strategy leverages multiple formats and
media, including an annual international symposium, a
resource-rich web site (ncpi.org.br), working papers, policy
briefs, videos, and direct press outreach.
Building leadership capacity and
catalyzing innovative policies and
programs
• Programa de Liderança Executiva en Desenvolvimento Infantil
Building leadership capacity and catalyzing
innovative policies and programs
• Executive Leadership Program in Early Childhood Development->
engage Brazilian leaders in a dialogue on the science of early
childhood development and how effective public leaders can apply
this science to some of Brazil’s most complex social problems.
• Forty-seven public leaders representing the executive and
legislative branches of federal, state and municipal government
attended the Program. The participants came from 16 states in
Brazil, and the 12 federal deputies who attended represent eight
different political parties.
Alexandra Brentani
Faculdade de Medicina – USP
Naercio Menezes Filho
Centro de Políticas Públicas – Insper
www.ncpi.org.br