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The first 1,000 days of life shape every day that follows.
We need to know more about them.
A beat by Irene Caselli
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How should media cover children in conflict?
It is a haunting image: a woman dressed in blue, her head covered, holding a child’s body covered in a white sheet. The photograph is by Palestinian photographer Mohammed Salem, who works with Reuters. It was taken on Oct. 17, 2023, and won the World
Forever in the archive
Let’s get our v-words right! And other lessons you have taught me
Last week I published a story about things I wished I knew about sex when I was younger, inspired by Sex Education, a Netflix series that I really enjoy. When it was posted, I could hear part of myself screaming inside my head: How can you
12 things I wish I knew about sex before I started having it
The Netflix series Sex Education got me thinking about those early awkward moments of confusion when I became sexually active. So, inspired by the series, here’s a list of some of the things that I wish I had known back then.
Lessons on entertaining ourselves indoors from the masters of simple play
I’ve been in lockdown for a week now. I’m in Naples, Italy, and the coronavirus containment measures caught me, my husband and my child at my parents’ place, during a visit. Since we have a nomadic lifestyle, and no home, we simply had to stay
How do we raise a feminist?
Every person who believes men are superior to women was once a child. People who see women as possessions passed on from their fathers to their husbands; as child bearers and kitchen cleaners; as worthless on the sports field or in the boardroom; as leaders
Women! Women everywhere (even on the walls)
Powerful marches and strikes were led by women in Latin America to mark International Women’s Day this year – something I’ve missed since I’m in Italy, where public gatherings are to be kept to a minimum because of coronavirus containment strategies. Women in Latin America marched
I was writing about male and female brains, but I decided to kill my story. This is why
In early January, I published a piece about raising a son while trying to avoid gender stereotypes. The piece stirred up much debate and discussion. Some readers questioned the science behind the piece and why I had decided to refer to neuroscientists who question just how important the
Do you have questions about raising a child you were always too afraid to ask? Now is your chance!
Since starting my job as the First 1,000 Days correspondent, I began getting emails and messages from friends asking me for parenting advice. Which children’s books do I suggest? How soon could someone stop breastfeeding? Any tips for flying with a small child? To be
Over the last few weeks, I’ve had some difficult talks about abortion. And that’s a very good thing
During my current stay in Argentina, I’ve sat through a bunch of dinners where abortion was compared to murder. I have friends and extended family who believe that a person is formed at the moment of conception and that an embryo or a foetus should
The birth of a movement: how activists are winning the battle to make abortion a right
Despite the sometimes deadly consequences, church and state have always made sure abortion was legally restricted in Argentina. But the tide is turning. By engaging with young people and building a diverse coalition, pro-choice activists are forcing the government to act.
Women subjected to FGM are not just victims. Many are actively fighting back to stop the practice
We euphemistically call our vulvas and vaginas our “private parts”. I don’t like using euphemisms for our genitalia, but what this euphemism does get right is the idea that our sexual and reproductive organs are exclusively ours and should be shared only when we decide. Unfortunately,
Forever in the archive:
Why would you ever argue against daycare for every child?
It’s good for society, it’s good for your kids, and it’s good for the economy. If we want equal and prosperous societies, we should make daycare a universal right. When does education start? As late as 2011, Unesco* hadn’t even contemplated formal education for children under the age
The benefits of making mistakes
Growing up, mistakes were something to be avoided at all costs – or to be covered up if they ever happened. I was used to getting the best grades and had a hard time admitting to having done something wrong. So, when my newsletter last
What I’ll be writing about in 2020 – and how you can help
When I introduce myself to people as the First 1,000 Days correspondent, some think that I belong to a religious cult, others are simply confused. So I usually break it down for them and explain that I write about early childhood, reproductive rights, sexuality and
Callout: Join my first 1,000 days advisory board
As part of my exploration into the first 1,000 days of human life, I’d like to tell as many stories as possible, so I need to hear from you. The 1,000 days start, and they can look very different based on who you are and
Let’s talk about sex, baby (and gender, too)
Part of what we do here at The Correspondent is explain our learning curve as writers and bring our readers along for the sake of transparency. Last week, my latest article came out about my challenges as a feminist mother raising a boy. It started off as
From boys to feminists: raising a child in a gender-free environment
Wanting to raise a feminist son has forced me to confront some of my own uncomfortable biases. But a world without gender benefits boys just as much as girls.
A match made in Evin: an encounter that showed me no story is too small to tell
In this, the season for gift-giving, we correspondents reflect on interactions with members that have enriched our journalism. After my story on children born in Evin, Iran’s most notorious prison, I heard from a member still coming to terms with her birth there. Back in
We need to end the stigma around menstruation. Period
Last weekend, I travelled for about 30 hours to get from my birth family that was reunited in Trento, Italy, to the family I married into that lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Some 25 hours into the journey, on the plane, I suddenly felt a
Trauma can be inherited. We need to understand what we’re passing on
When it comes to negative experiences in childhood, the body seems to keep score. But even small changes can positively affect health in later life.
Leaving crumbs behind
Little Thumb is one of those old fairytales with so many horrible details that it would never make it into a children’s book these days. It became popular in the 17th-century version, written by France’s Charles Perrault, the author of Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. The story
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