The World Organization of Associations for Prenatal Education, OMAEP, expresses its congratulations to Sebastián Franco Llanos, researcher, member of ANEP Spain and OMAEP, on the defense of his doctoral thesis entitled Towards an Epistemology of Prenatal Pedagogy, carried out at the Autonomous University of Madrid in March 2026.
This research obtained the distinction Cum Laude and was nominated to compete for the 2026 Extraordinary Doctoral Award in Spain, a distinction that highlights the academic quality, originality and scientific relevance of this contribution.
For OMAEP and ANEP Spain, this achievement represents a particular joy, because it recognizes the work of a young researcher who is part of this international community devoted to prenatal education. His contribution helps to strengthen the pedagogical, scientific and communicative foundations of a field oriented toward the care of the beginning of life.
The Autonomous University of Madrid recently disseminated this contribution through a scientific culture article entitled “Prenatal Pedagogy defined as a new pedagogical branch centered on the beginning of life.” This publication emphasizes that researchers from UAM and UNIR propose situating education within the prenatal stage, beyond its traditional health-related approach. According to this publication, this new pedagogical framework can contribute to improving prenatal programs, guiding public policies and renewing the formation of families and teachers.
Likewise, in Colombia, Universidad del Valle, through the School of Literary Studies, recently published a message recognizing his academic path and his contribution to research, highlighting the academic projection of a former student whose work articulates education, research and social commitment.
The thesis proposes understanding Prenatal Pedagogy as a new pedagogical branch centered on the prenatal stage. This perspective does not replace the path already traced by prenatal education; it recognizes it, provides it with pedagogical foundations and projects it toward new scientific, formative and social developments. In this way, it strengthens the work that associations, professionals and researchers committed to life before birth have carried out for several decades.
In addition to his doctoral research, Sebastián Franco has contributed to the theoretical, visual and communicative construction of Prenatal Pedagogy and its epistemology. This work was reflected in initiatives such as the First International Conference on Prenatal Pedagogy, organized on November 18 and 19, 2020, as well as the First International Congress on Prenatal Pedagogy, held virtually from November 15 to 17, 2021 and organized by the Autonomous University of Madrid, REDIPE and ANEP.
He also participated, as a member of the ANEP Spain team, in the Erasmus+ project Virtual Center for Prenatal Education, carried out by OMAEP from 2022 to 2025, contributing to research and multimedia design for the development of formative resources intended to disseminate prenatal education among families, professionals and institutions.
For OMAEP, this contribution invites us to continue bringing together disciplines such as Pedagogy, Health, Psychology, Obstetrics, among others, in order to improve the conditions in which life begins. Prenatal education and Prenatal Pedagogy can be understood, in this sense, as complementary foundations for advancing toward a “Science of life that integrates care, formation and humanity from the origin,” as Sebastián Franco expresses it.
The news of the defense of your thesis — obtained with the distinction Cum Laude and selected for the Extraordinary Doctoral Award — is a true source of joy for OMAEP!
What you contribute is not only an academic achievement: it is the transmission of an important message about life, coming from a young person to his peers who wish to create the best conditions for bringing a child into the world.The path you are tracing — between scientific rigor, human commitment and international vision — is exactly the one prenatal education needs in order to continue developing and reaching parents, professionals and institutions around the world.You are living proof that what we cultivate together bears fruit. And your young and determined voice is one of the most beautiful promises the future holds for us! With all my esteem and warmest congratulations,
Lavinia Mihaela Nanu
President of OMAEP“For all that has been said, it is a great honor and a great joy for ANEP Spain to have him as a member of the Association’s Board of Directors. We emphasize his great human and professional value, as well as the rigor he demonstrates in everything he does. We also recognize the affection, dedication and spirit of service with which he always collaborates in everything requested of him, as well as the magnificent work he presents on every occasion.
The presentation of his thesis was a true example of clarity, scientific rigor, a very well-argued sequential structure, confidence and serenity in the exposition. For all these reasons, he received well-deserved recognition and the congratulations of the entire committee. He is a promising young researcher, personally committed, as a future father, and professionally committed to prenatal education and pedagogy, with a deep awareness of the need to disseminate them for the transformation of society.Thank you very much for your work and for your contribution to the field of prenatal pedagogy and education. Congratulations!”
Carmen Carballo Basadre
President of ANEP Spain
Vice-President of OMAEP
OMAEP congratulates Sebastián Franco Llanos on this academic achievement and on his contributions as a researcher and member of this international community. His work contributes to caring for the origin of life, strengthening human formation and promoting a more conscious society.
OMAEP
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