Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children a vital force in helping children flourish globally
A generous $25-million gift from Edwin Leong (MSc 1974) and the Tai Hung Fai Charitable Foundation in 2019 established the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children, an important partnership between the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids). Over the past six years, the centre has been driving critical progress in areas such as data science, policy research and interventions in child health.
Whether it’s addressing the links between health, education and online safety, understanding the impact of screen time on academic achievement in children under the age of eight or exploring new ways to ease the transition for children with complex health needs from paediatric to adult care, the Leong Centre is reducing inequities through research, education and policy to ensure children across the world can thrive.
“Edwin Leong’s tremendous gift has enabled the Leong Centre to generate critical momentum in the quest to improve the health of children everywhere,” said Eyal Cohen and Astrid Guttmann, co-directors of the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children. “We’re delighted the centre has evolved to become a powerful convenor of knowledge, a catalyst for improving care systems, a creator of effective new health tools and a key contributor in shaping legislation to maximize opportunities for healthy child development.”
Edwin Leong’s tremendous gift has enabled the Leong Centre to generate critical momentum in the quest to improve the health of children everywhere.
As a research hub, the centre mobilizes the talent of clinical experts in child health, scientists from various disciplines and international trainees and expands its influence across the globe through partnerships that broaden its reach and impact.
“It’s immensely gratifying to see how quickly the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children has emerged as a driving force in addressing essential questions in child health,” said Meredith Irwin, chair of the Department of Paediatrics at U of T and paediatrician-in-chief at SickKids. “The Leong Centre’s multidisciplinary research, focused on a key phase of life, is breaking new ground and enabling the various systems that contribute to children’s development to be more responsive in a way that will make a real difference as children grow up to become adults.”
You can read the full story on the University of Toronto's website.