In this episode of Frontiers in Health and Happiness, host Ayla Fudala speaks with Richard Weissbourd, senior lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and director of the Making Caring Common Project, about what it means to raise caring, moral, and thriving children in today’s world.

Weissbourd explains why moral development is not just about beliefs, but about capacities like empathy, perspective-taking, justice, and caring for people beyond our immediate circles. He discusses how parents and schools can help children develop these capacities, why achievement and happiness often crowd out caring, and how an over-focus on children’s moment-to-moment emotions can unintentionally undermine their well-being.

The conversation also explores Making Caring Common’s work with families and schools, the Turning the Tide initiative to reform college admissions, the impact of social media and public life on children’s moral growth, and why caring for others is essential not only for children’s happiness, but for the health of our communities and democracy.

Resources related to Richard Weissbourd's work:

• Making Caring Common Project: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/
• Resources for families: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/resources-for-families
• Resources for educators: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/resources-for-educators
• Turning the Tide / college admissions work: https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/resources-for-colleges

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