Leading the way – shining a spotlight on early career scientists

Brain Canada held its public Annual General Meeting in Toronto on Tuesday, October 1, 2024, at a conference centre in the heart of downtown.

The event Making brainwaves, pioneering research capacity was hosted by the Royal Bank of Canada, through Wayne Bossert, a member of the Board of Directors of Brain Canada and Chair of the Foundation’s Audit, Finance, Investment and Risk Management Committee. The reception included poster presentations from Rising Stars Trainee Award recipients and engaging talks from recipients of the Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research program.

Attendees learned about exciting new developments in the field of neuroscience, including the sex-specific medical benefits of exercise for people with Alzheimer’s, a mobile mental health app for youth living with mental health challenges, the best way to use a new form of deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s patients, and new approaches to increase the efficacy of treatment for children with brain cancer. The evening concluded with a keynote from Momentum Grant recipient and 2019 Azrieli Future Leader in Canadian Brain Research, Dr. Mark Cembrowski. He spoke about how his lab’s state-of-the-art collaboration with brain surgeons and pathologists uses living human brain tissue, surgically removed as part of treatment for epilepsy, to test the application of new drugs to reduce seizures.

This year’s AGM was a terrific example of how research can be effectively translated to a public audience while showcasing the exciting and bold science that Brain Canada and its donors enable through the Canada Brain Research Fund, Brain Canada’s unique partnership with the Government of Canada, through Health Canada. A heartfelt thanks to the Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research program’s anchor donor, the Azrieli Foundation, and Chair Dr. Naomi Azrieli, OC, who spoke at the event.

While the challenge of neurological diseases and disorders is huge, there is the promise of a brighter future, and that comes from a world-class research community committed to accelerating scientific discovery, and from the generosity of our donors and partners.

Dr. Naomi Azrieli, OC

Donors and partners to the Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research program include The Arrell Family Foundation, Women’s Brain Health Initiative, the Alvin Segal Family Foundation, the Hewitt Foundation, The Erika Legacy Foundation, the Barry and Laurie Green Family Charitable Trust, the Lotte & John Hecht Memorial Foundation and ALS Society of Canada.