2020 Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research

Brain Canada Foundation is pleased to announce the second in a series of new funding opportunities to support early career researchers. With funding to start in 2021, the 2020 Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research Grants Program will be formally launched later in October 2020 with a Request for Applications including detailed guidelines, eligibility criteria, and application components.

This Program aims to support early-career investigators conducting world-class research, which has been identified as a key priority for Brain Canada and the research community. In consultation with the broader research community, we recognize that early-career investigators often lack the preliminary data and resources that are required to obtain their first large operating grant. By providing early-career researchers with funding at this critical point in their careers, the objective is to build Canada's pipeline of future leaders in brain research and a foundation of research excellence and innovation.

Brain Canada recognizes the impact of COVID-19 on early career investigators and has adjusted the period of eligibility for those applying to this competition. Thus, the competition will be open to all new investigators within six years of their first independent academic appointment, conducting research in the field of neuroscience (any discipline). Brain Canada intends to offer this program on a yearly basis, with $1M available for the second cycle of the program. Individual grants will be $100,000 over two years.

Following the release of the Request for Applications, interested applicants will be required to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI), providing an overview of the project they intend to pursue, by mid-November 2020. The LOI will be peer reviewed to select applicants that will proceed to the Full Application phase.

The deadline for Full Applications will be in February 2021.

For more information, contact futureleaders@braincanada.ca.