"This book describes the process and outcomes of a collaborative, interdisciplinary research project on early child development. The project was interdisciplinary and collaborative in two ways. First, it included research from pediatrics, social work, community planning, landscape architecture, psychology, sociology, nursing, occupational and physical therapy, women's studies and Indigenous studies. Second, all of the ten studies were partnerships between university-based researchers and community-based professionals. The book describes the rules or formal guidelines which guided our work; the rituals which provided opportunities for meaningful interaction among the research teams; and the practical realities we faced in terms of time, space and money to keep the project moving"--

This book describes the findings of a five-year journey of inquiry of medical and social scientists. Of particular interest and emphasis are issues of gender, poverty, Aboriginal status, and cultural factors that frame the lives of "typical" and "non-typical" young children and their families in urban, rural and remote communities.