This September newsletter comes after a summer which, as well as a time to rest and relax, has been a time of very positive activity and engagement for HRF.

July began with our Experts Meeting (EM) ‘Nurturing Healthy Relationships at Home and at Work’ held in Barcelona at IESE Business School with our academic partners the International Center for Work and Family (ICWF), supported by the Social Trends Institute. This meeting embodied the research into the role and value of the home added to the work and family strands at the heart of ICWF’s remit and vision. Post-Covid, working from home has highlighted the role the home plays in our professional working lives and relationships. The conversation about Work-Life balance has developed into deeper examination of the well-being and health benefits of good relationships across our whole life spheres.

Academic leaders and contributing experts are now working on an open-access publication, planned for 2025. EM Moderator María José Bosch is Professor of People Management at the ESE Business School of the Universidad de los Andes, and you can learn more in our last ‘In conversation with…’

In addition, the United Nations has now published on its website the report and recommendations of the Experts Group Meeting that we were invited to attend in May to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the International Day of Families. Among the recommendations are all those that HRF made as a result of our Experts Meeting ‘Home and Climate Change’ held in Nottingham in 2023. We have all this material on our website.

Finally, we are delighted to announce that we have just signed an academic partnership with the Pontificia Università della Santa Croce within the programme: ‘Towards a culture of care. A response to the anthropological crisis’. Our academic director, Prof. Rosa Lastra will represent HRF as a member of the Scientific Committee of the partnership that, among other activities, is organising a conference in March 2025. At this meeting HRF will coordinate and moderate a workshop on ‘The value of the Home in the Culture of Care.’ We shall share more details soon. Submission deadline for extended abstracts: October 31, 2024. 

As the autumn begins we approach the end of what has been a busy and fruitful year and look forward to new projects and enriching conversations for 2025.

Warm regards,

Bryan K. Sanderson