Dr Joanne Ailwood is a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education at the University of Newcastle, Australia. In her research, she reflects upon the nuances and complexities of early childhood education and care. Aspects of this work are historical and political, engaging in policy analysis and investigating broader historical, social and cultural contexts of families, women’s paid work, care and childhood. More recent aspects of Jo’s research are focused on the care and education relationship between parents and early childhood educators, including their understandings of their relationships not only with each other as adults, but also their place in the lives of the children they care for. Currently, Jo is working on a research and teacher training project involving a rural school in Zimbabwe, together with Dr Stephanie Bengtsson. This work in Zimbabwe is centred on school community development, and examines how local expertise and capacity can be harnessed to overcome the many challenges facing the Zimbabwean education system today.