This report constitutes one of the first activities of the Forum on Adolescence, a cross-cutting activity of the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council of the National Academies. Established under the auspices of the Board on Children, Youth, and Families, the forum's overarching mission is to synthesize, analyze, and evaluate scientific research on critical national issues that relate to youth and their families, as well as to disseminate research and its policy and programmatic implications. Nearly 60 reports published by the National Academy Press touch on adolescent issues and on issues relevant to their health and development. Synthesizing that body of individual research reports, this report attempts to characterize the institution's work to date related to adolescence. The report's chapters are: (1) "Introduction"; (2) "Adolescence: A Time of Opportunity and Risk" (the developing adolescent, social context in which adolescents develop, changes in U.S. families, peer relationships); (3) "Supporting Adolescents with Social Institutions" (neighborhoods and community settings, schools, health care delivery systems, child welfare and juvenile justice); (4) "Addressing Challenges and Promoting the Healthy Development of Adolescents" (sexual risk, unintended pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases; tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs); (5) "Adolescents Taking Their Place in the World" (adolescents in the workforce, school-to-work programs, changing sociodemographic patterns); and (6) "Implications for Research and Linking Research to Policy and Practice" (increasing numbers and growing diversity, healthy adolescent development, relationships between teenagers and parents, new trends in adolescent behavior, adolescent well-being, programs for intervention and youth development, developmentally appropriate health care services, the media and advances in technology, role of the forum). Each chapter lists the Academy reports referenced. (Contains 22 references.) (EV)