The strengths and abilities children develop from infancy through adolescence are crucial for their physical, emotional, and cognitive growth, which in turn help them to achieve success in school and to become responsible, economically self-sufficient, and healthy adults. Capable, responsible, and healthy adults are clearly the foundation of a well-functioning and prosperous society, yet America's future is not as secure as it could be because millions of American children live in families with incomes below the poverty line. A wealth of evidence suggests that a lack of adequate economic resources for families with children compromises these children's ability to grow and achieve adult success, hurting them and the broader society. A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty reviews the research on linkages between child poverty and child well-being, and analyzes the poverty-reducing effects of major assistance programs directed at children and families. This report also provides policy and program recommendations for reducing the number of children living in poverty in the United States by half within 10 years.

This book looks at human capital development and provides explanation for why cognitive development varies among ethnic groups. The book provides a strong thesis to counter explanations based on racial and genetic superiority.

This book looks at human capital development and provides an explanation for why cognitive development varies among ethnic groups. The book uses an interdisciplinary approach to examine inter-generational ethnic poverty. It puts forth an argument that the ethnic poverty gap can be reduced, and to do so we need a broader view of human capital which considers the match between the nature of the economy and the specific capabilities needed. The book focuses on the interrelationship between developmental psychology and socio-economic status and argues that the most important relationship in a knowledge economy is actually the one between a parent and a child. The book begins by looking at cultures and assimilation and investigates the link between education, culture and socio-economic status. It also attempts to answer the question of what the link between culture, parents and children’s ability is and why ethnic groups vary in their nurturing. It delves into how parenting and cognitive development are interrelated. This thought-provoking book concludes with an emphasis on nurture and how it may alleviate ethnic poverty and shape social policies. The book provides a strong thesis to counter explanations based on racial and genetic superiority.

A daunting challenge to the international community is how to go about lifting the world's huge poor population out of poverty. "Asset-based" approaches to development are aimed specifically at designing and implementing public policies that will increase the capital assets of the poor—i.e., the physical, financial, human, social, and natural resources that can be acquired, developed, improved, and transferred across generations. In this pathbreaking book, Caroline Moser and a group of experts with on-the-ground experience provide a set of case studies of asset-building projects around the globe. The authors use a cutting-edge research framework that moves beyond quick snapshot solutions to the problem of poverty. They highlight the ways in which poor households and communities can move out of poverty through longer-term accumulation of capital assets. Contributors include Michael Carter (University of Wisconsin), Monique Cohen (Microfinance Opportunities), Sarah Cook (Institute of Development Studies, Sussex), Hector Cordero-Guzman (Baruch College, CUNY), Lilianne Fan (Oxfam, UK), Pablo Farias (Ford Foundation, New York), Clare Ferguson (formerly DFID), Andy Felton (FDIC), Sarah Gammage (Rutgers University), Anirudh Krishna (Duke University), Amy Liu (Brookings Institution), Vijay Mahajan (BASIX, India), Paula Nimpuno-Parente (Ford Foundation, South Africa), Manuel Orozco (Inter-American Dialogue),Victoria Quiroz-Becerra (Baruch College, CUNY), Dennis Rodgers (London School of Economics), and Andres Solimano (CEPAL, Santiago, Chile).

This report aims to understand the extent to which inequalities in opportunity and outcomes are related--and the mechanisms that drive that relationship--to help evaluate which policies have the most potential to level the playing field.

Fair Progress? Economic Mobility across Generations around the World focuses on an issue that has gotten much attention in the developed world, but will present new data and analysis covering most of the world including developing economies. The analysis considers whether those born in poverty or in prosperity are destined to remain in the same economic circumstances into which they were born, and looks back over a half a century at whether children's lives are better or worse than their parents' in different parts of the world. It suggests local, national, and global actions and policies that can help break the cycle of poverty, paving the way for the next generation to realize their potential and improve their lives.