For the past decade, a diverse group of distinguished scientists has worked to translate complex research about early brain development into language that is scientifically accurate, highly credible, understandable to nonscientists, and useful to public decision makers. Across the United States and around the world, in both public and private sectors, the work of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child has helped change the conversation about providing young children with a healthy, safe, and nurturing start in life. As the Council passes its tenth anniversary and looks ahead to the next phase of its work, its members are committed to leveraging the rapidly advancing frontiers of 21st-century science to catalyze innovative investments that will achieve dramatic improvements in the life prospects of young children facing adversity. This retrospective report tells the history of how the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child came to be, what its impact has been, how its members work, and why the Council has made a difference. [Nancy Lynn Goldberg, Linda Jacobson, Millicent Lawton, Dan McLaughlin, Al Race, Rebecca Stoltz, and Madeline Zehnder contributed to the reporting and production of this paper.]