To thrive, children need the support of those around them, from family members to friends, caregivers to educators — everyone has a role to play. Unfortunately, barriers like community violence, racism, trauma and health issues can affect a family’s ability to provide a safe and stable environment where children can realize their full potential.
At ZERO TO THREE, we believe that nurturing every child’s potential is a collective responsibility. By advocating for federal, state and local policies and systems that strengthen families, we empower them to overcome obstacles and create the stability that babies and toddlers need. Using a network of formal and informal support systems, communities can help protect families from the impact of trauma and stress, preventing crises before they arise.
Sensory pathways like hearing and language peak around the first three years of life, and toxic stress during this time without support can severely disrupt healthy brain development. Unfortunately, prevalent national challenges like health and financial crises and racial inequality hinder many families’ ability to provide the supportive environment babies and toddlers need to thrive. That’s why a transformational change in child welfare is critical.
According to research, somewhere in the United States, an infant is removed from their family every seven minutes. Additionally, 33% of children enter foster care during the most critical time of their development — from birth to three years old — when they need lasting permanency the most.
We connect babies and their families with the services and support they need to ensure healthy development and a stable environment, removing the need for authorities to place babies under court jurisdiction or in care. Our goal is also to support the caring adults who touch the lives of infants and toddlers and to strengthen families who’ve had child welfare experiences, undergone extreme hardships or endured traumatic events.
At ZERO TO THREE, we transform the science of early childhood success into valuable and practical resources and responsive policies for parents, professionals and policymakers nationwide. We do this through our Safe Babies™ initiative, which encourages collective action in states and communities to change child welfare into a practice that promotes child and family well-being.
Comprehensive resources for successful early childhood development play a crucial role in child welfare, as early connections foster lifelong benefits, shape children’s futures and strengthen families. Explore our extensive library of parenting resources, support for early childhood professionals and resources for child welfare policymakers and advocates committed to nurturing young lives.
Explore our library of webinars and resources for child welfare training or sign up for professional development.
