Children are the raison d'être of Avenir d'enfants and they must be able to count on a welcoming, engaged and united community if they are to be school-ready and enjoy educational success from their very first day. Avenir d'enfants believes that families and communities have the power to support children's full development through action, and that acting together through mutual aid, collaboration and cooperation is essential.

Our mission

To support the mobilization of local communities for the overall development of children aged five and under living in poverty, to ensure that every child has a chance to benefit from a good start in life.

Our vision

In the spirit of the well-known proverb "It takes a village to raise a child," we believe that each child has the right to develop serenely and that we must all combine our efforts and make a commitment to giving children and their families the best possible odds, since they are essential to the future of Quebec society. More than ever, we must take care of our children if we want Québec to grow. This idea is backed by the work of McCain, Mustard and Shanker,* who state that "how societies understand and apply their knowledge of human development will determine the kind of cultures, societies and civilizations created." They believe, and we agree, that it is the child who raises the village and the entire community. See our signature.

Our values

Avenir d'enfants acts and operates on the basis of the following values:

  • respect for our partners and for each community's pace;
  • a creative,dynamic and pro-active approach;
  • collaboration;
  • effectiveness and rigour;
  • flexibility and adaptability;
  • the sharing of knowledge and experience, irrespective of hierarchy.

Our objectives

To support and finance activities, projects and initiatives that aim to:

  • foster the overall development of children on all levels (physical, psychological, cognitive, language, social and affective) from the earliest age, while recognizing the leading role played by parents;
  • support parents right from their child's conception by providing them with the tools most apt to contribute to this development;
  • promote innovation and knowledge acquisition and transfer in these areas.
* McCain, Margaret Norrie, J. Fraser Mustard and Stuart Shanker. Early Years Study 2: Putting Science Into Action, Toronto, Council for Early Child Development, March 2007, 178 pages.