Bernard van Leer Foundation

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Bernard van Leer Foundation[1] is a private grantmaking foundation that funds and shares knowledge internationally about work in early childhood development and child rights. It was established in 1949 and is based in the Netherlands.

The foundation's income is derived from the bequest of Bernard van Leer, a Dutch industrialist and philanthropist who lived from 1883 to 1958, and is channelled through the Van Leer Group Foundation[2], which also funds the Jerusalem Film Centre[3] and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute[4]. The Bernard van Leer Foundation's mission is "to improve opportunities for children up to age 8 who are growing up in socially and economically difficult circumstances".

Currently the foundation funds work in three issue areas: "Strengthening the care environment"[5], "Successful transitions: The continuum from home to school"[6], and "Respect for diversity and social inclusion".[7] The foundation currently supports about 140 major projects which are implemented through local partners, focused on 21 countries which include both developing and industrialised countries and represent a geographical range that encompasses Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas.[8]

The foundation publishes a biannual journal entitled Early Childhood Matters, also published in Spanish as Espacio para la Infancia, along with occasional working papers and books, all of which are made available free of charge.[9]

The foundation's international grantmaking activities over several decades are credited with having helped to raise early childhood on the political agenda, notably through contributions to the development of the early childhood care and education sector in Jamaica and the Preschool Education Project in Kenya.[10]