In addition to the work the director, staff, and affiliated faculty do on projects, initiatives, and learning opportunities, the Center on the Developing Child also sponsors and participates in a wide variety of events and activities, both domestically and internationally. Check back often for the latest publication releases, news about the Center, and a selection of recent media coverage of Center initiatives and faculty. 
Sign up for the Center's mailing list to receive news and announcements from the Center >>
American Academy of Pediatrics Calls for Action to Address Toxic Stress
The nation’s pediatricians have issued an urgent call to action to address the dangers of toxic stress experienced by children early in life.
Early adversity—including such experiences as physical or emotional abuse, chronic neglect, caregiver substance abuse or mental illness, exposure to violence, and/or the accumulated burdens of family economic hardship—has long been known to increase the risks of disease and life-threatening behaviors later in life. Now, scientific advances provide solid evidence of how this occurs and underscore an urgent need to enhance existing strategies for promoting health and preventing disease across the lifespan.
In the policy statement that appears in the January 2012 issue of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) calls on “the entire pediatric community…to catalyze fundamental change in early childhood policy and services.” It urges a “greater focus on those interventions and community investments that reduce external threats to healthy brain growth.” Along with a technical report on the science of toxic stress, the policy statement marks the first time that the AAP, the premier U.S. organization of physicians who care for infants, children, adolescents and young adults, has highlighted toxic stress as a topic for urgent attention, and builds upon the cumulative work of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child and the Center on the Developing Child.
Read or download the full policy statement on the AAP Web site >>
Read or download the full technical report on the AAP Web site >>
Conte-CBS Colloquium on Mental Health
MRS Studies on the Neurobiology of Schizophrenia
Dost Ongür, M.D., Ph.D.
Chief of the Psychotic Disorders Division at McLean Hospital
Tuesday, February 28, 2012; 6:30 p.m.
The Biological Labs Building, Room 1080
16 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, Mass.
The Conte Center at Harvard, led by Center affiliated faculty member Takao Hensch, is a basic research initiative focused on the developmental origins of mental illness. The Conte-CBS Colloquium on Mental Health will be a monthly, interdisciplinary series of talks focused on mental health research.
Refreshments will be served at 6:00 p.m. This event is open to all Harvard University students, fellows, faculty and staff.
February 3, 2012
In this news feature from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), Marge Dwyer describes a recent review of studies led by Erin Dunn, who is a former Julius B. Richmond Fellow at the Center on the Developing Child and a current postdoctoral fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Dunn’s review sought to shed light on how genetic and environmental factors combine to influence the development of childhood depression. Her co-authors included Center-affiliated faculty member Jordan W. Smoller, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and MGH.
January 27, 2012
Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff discusses the impact of early childhood toxic stress on adult health in the January 23 EdCast, a weekly podcast interview conducted by Matthew Weber at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In the 14-minute interview, Shonkoff addresses the recent American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement on toxic stress, emphasizing the need for a new generation of interventions that not only identify risk factors but also build protection against their physiological consequences.
Stay Connected with the Center
The Center's newsletter includes news, events, reports, and connections from the Center and its initiatives.
Sign up for our mailing list >>
View archive of past newsletters >>
Press Information
Information for reporters and other members of the media is available here, including press contact information, FAQs, fact sheets and other resources.
More >>
Sign up to receive the Center's e-mail newsletter and other announcements >>
Subscribe to the Center's RSS feed for news and announcements >>
Follow the Center on the Developing Child on Twitter >>
