This edition of Early Childhood Matters offers a first introduction to the Bernard van Leer Foundation’s thinking, and fleshes out new goals for the period 2010 to 2015. In a keynote article programme director Michael Feigelson explains the foundation's preliminary thinking behind each of the new goals and what is hoped to be achieved. The other articles explore various aspects of the new goals and include contributions from the Wolfensohn Centre, WHO and UNICEF; an interview with UN special representative on violence against children, Marta Santos Pais; and country-specific insights from Brazil, the Netherlands and Turkey.