March 4th | Breaking Through

What Will It Take to Put Early Childhood at the Center?

This 90-minute virtual forum brings together leading thinkers to generate discussions relevant to all actors in the ecosystem, who can reflect and contribute as we confront the persisting narrative gap in early childhood development. We will explore why the field remains fragmented, under-resourced, and under-recognized — and how a stronger, more unified story can catalyze systemic progress for every child.

Live translation captions will be available.

A keynote conversation on why “the ecosystem is rich, but the links are weak”, what a competent, well-connected system could achieve, exposing systemic blind spots and surfacing opportunities to elevate research, practice, community-rooted solutions, and policy.

A collective reflection on the ecosystem we want to build: cohesive, visible, and driven by shared learning and collective action.

Michael Feigelson, Van Leer Foundation, Netherlands

Michel Vandenbroeck, Ghent University, Belgium

Ghassan Issa, ANECD, Lebanon

Lynette Okengo, AfECN, Kenya

Joan Lombardi, Stanford Center on Early Childhood and Georgetown Collaborative on Global Children's Issues, USA

Mihaela Ionescu, ISSA, The Netherlands

Anyone interested in looking to action real change and propelling the early childhood field further, so that every child thrives.

Join us as we open a new chapter of collective commitment, shared purpose, and united action. For every child.

ECOS EVENTS

March 4th | Breaking Through

Wednesday, March 4th, 2026

14h CET

Join us for the inaugural ECOS Thought Leadership Event, a bold conversation about why early childhood still struggles to secure the visibility, investment, and priority it deserves — and what it will take to change that.

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