The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically affected all aspects of professional and private life worldwide, including the field of early childhood education and care (ECE). This volume sheds light on leadership in ECE: How did leaders experience the challenges they were facing and what coping strategies did they apply in order to deal with the changes in everyday life and practices in ECE centres? Authors from twelve countries present empirical findings gaining information on different crisis management mechanisms in ECE systems around the world.

Contributions by: Marit Bøe, Bernhard Kalicki, Sina Fackler, Mariana Grgic, Hanna Maly-Motta, Franz Neuberger, Susanne Kuger, Manja Flöter, Eva Pölzl-Stefanec, Susanne Kammerhofer, Catherine Walter-Laager, Melissa Rodriguez-Meehan, Clarisse Halpern, Sandie Wong, Lauren Sadow, Manjula Waniganayake, Yvonne Zurynski, Janaki Amin, Rebecca Bull, Maria R. Dahm, Sheila Degotardi, Michael Donovan, Fay Hadley, Linda Harrison, Ulla Soukainen, Marja-Liisa Keski-Rauska, Sanna Parrila, Marjo Mäntyjärvi, Eleftheria Argyropoulou, Taija Korhonen, Maria Styf, Catarina Arvidsson