Two researchers from The University of the West Indies (The UWI) have been recognised with the 2026 Yidan Prize for Education Development, one of the world’s largest education prizes, for research that has helped transform early childhood development programmes for vulnerable children.
Professor Susan P. Walker, Emeritus Professor of Nutrition, and Dr Susan M. Chang-Lopez, Senior Lecturer at the Caribbean Institute for Health Research at UWI, were recognised alongside Professor Sally Grantham-McGregor of University College London for developing Reach Up, an evidence-based early childhood intervention designed to support children’s development from birth to age four.
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The programme grew out of research focused on improving the development of young children in disadvantaged communities. Reach Up provides caregivers with simple, affordable activities built around everyday interactions, encouraging them to talk, play and respond to children in ways that support cognitive, language and social development.
What began as research with strong Caribbean connections has since developed into an international programme. Reach Up is now being used in more than 21 countries across the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East through health, education, social protection and humanitarian systems. Its materials are freely available and can be adapted to different cultural settings.
The Yidan Prize Foundation described the work as an example of how evidence-based research can be translated into practical programmes capable of reaching vulnerable communities on a global scale. The recognition places Caribbean-led research at the centre of an international conversation about improving outcomes for young children.
Each of the 2026 Yidan Prize laureates will receive HK$30 million (approximately US$3.8 million), comprising a cash award and an unrestricted project fund to support further work. The prize is intended to help education innovators expand the impact of their research and initiatives.
For The UWI, the award represents international recognition of research emerging from the Caribbean and highlights the university’s contribution to addressing challenges that affect children and families both within the region and beyond. UWI has identified research and development as central to supporting the Caribbean’s social and economic advancement.
The researchers are expected to receive the award at the 2026 Yidan Prize Summit in Hong Kong in December, where the achievement will further highlight the potential of early childhood interventions to improve children’s development and help narrow inequalities from the earliest years of life.
