A word from the president

This year, the Mustela Foundation is celebrating its 30th anniversary.

The foundation has been run as part of the Fondation de France from the outset and remains true to the aim it was given by my father, Paul Berthomé, CEO of Laboratoires Expanscience: working to support children.

Historically, the Mustela Foundation has always provided support for research. Since 1982, we have awarded almost 100 grants for university studies in areas such as psychology, sociology, psychology, paediatrics, clinical medicine, demographics, history and the paramedical professions. In doing so we have encouraged the emergence of new areas in the field of research into childhood, reflecting the technical and social changes of the time, including welcoming newborn babies, resilience, early interactions, antenatal diagnosis, migrant mothers, changes in family structures and much more.

The Mustela Foundation, however, also aims to provide day-to-day support for professionals working in the field of infant care – and as a result, also supports families. It does so on the one hand, by producing and distributing free materials on prevention in the form of posters, leaflets, books and interactive modules on the internet, and on the other, through its presence in the field. In France, we are delighted to have formed a partnership in 2006 with the French Society of Paediatrics in order to award an annual Social Paediatrics prize and work directly to improve the living conditions of disadvantaged children. The Social Paediatrics prize has also been awarded in Italy in the form of the Atopia School Prize. Abroad, we sponsor several humanitarian projects to support mothers and children every year, working closely with partners in the field with a focus on real long-term development.

Finally, we engage in dialogue with professionals working in the field of childhood through our scientific committees and consultative, strategic planning and awards committees. Researchers and practitioners based in hospitals or working independently, doctors, psychologists, midwives, nurses, paediatric nurses and pharmacists are just some of the professionals with whom we have built long-term relationships.

It is no surprise, then, that the Mustela Foundation is setting up a community space on the internet to mark its 30th anniversary: a forum for discussions between our partners and former prizewinners and, in the future, I hope, a comprehensive site for providing information on childhood and discussing the issues associated with it.