The School of Human Ecology hosts a collective of campus centers and initiatives that conduct a variety of scholarly, research, and outreach efforts. They are part of a larger UW campus-wide network, which involve faculty, staff, and students from the natural and social sciences, to the arts and humanities.
Initiatives
4W Initiative
4W (Women & Wellbeing in Wisconsin & the World) Initiative leverages the strengths of UW–Madison to be a convener and leading voice in education, applied research, and impactful engagement to promote gender equity, global wellbeing, and the full participation of women in society.
Equity & Justice Network
The School of Human Ecology has a century-long history of improving the well-being of children and families, particularly those who are underrepresented and underserved in our communities. The Equity and Justice Network initiative supports the continued evolution of our school into a community wherein people with diverse backgrounds find success, share knowledge, and advance justice.
PELICAN Center
The Center on Promoting Early Literacy, Child Advocacy, and Nurturance (PELICAN) aims to bring students and professionals from different disciplines into the same conversation with the goal of bettering the lives of children and families. Its purpose is to help those who care about children and families build a more complete, more inclusive, more collaborative, and more powerful toolbox to use in their work.
Prenatal to Five Initiative
The Prenatal to Five initiative focuses on the earliest times in a child’s life, looking for ways to enhance brain development and improve the quality of life in our state and our nation. Through the human ecology lens, we investigate the impact of housing, nutrition, physical health, education, parenting, and more during this key period of life.