The Brain Repair Centre Research, Dissemination & Commercialization (BRC-RD&C) Grant Program

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International Partnerships

Dalhousie BRC and Ben Gurion University of the Negev

TBI Research Partnership

In 2017 the BRC received funding from the Department of Labour and Advanced Education to develop a business model to include the provision of continuing and individualized care to brain injured patients while combining with research/investigation and delivery of support through a collaborative care model. This model is based on the development of a patient-centric, inter-disciplinary and collaborative research effort that aims to improve prevention policies for all Nova Scotians and clinical outcomes for TBI survivors.

The Brain Repair Centre welcomes you to learn more about this partnership by downloading the digital version of the business plan. Click on the cover image to learn more about the proposed model concept, which promotes patient driven research projects, and exploits and capitalizes on existing talent and facilities to bring the concept of a living laboratory to the fore.

The Brain Repair Centre - Research, Dissemination & Commercialization (BRC-RDC) program supports events and meetings that contribute to the dissemination, exchange, and commercialization of research aimed at improving brain and neurological health outcomes for Nova Scotians and Canadians.

The specific objectives of this funding opportunity are to:

• Enhance the international reputation of the Halifax neuroscience community by supporting local events and meetings that will attract international, national, and local participants
• Highlight intellectual property (IP) for potential investment opportunities
• Provide a venue for trainees to engage leaders in both business and science
• Highlight the research infrastructure at Dalhousie, Nova Scotia Health Authority and IWK to foster collaborations
• Develop an entrepreneurial culture within the neuroscience research community

Events/activities may focus on, but are not limited to, the following:
• Dissemination and/or discussion of research findings at scientific meetings, workshops, conferences, congresses or symposia
• Education of groups such as identified business partners, health professionals, community organizations, policy-makers, the general public
• Creation of business opportunities for advancing intellectual property

Details on submissions for the 2018 RD & C grants will be published here at a later date.

For more information about submitting a proposal to the BRC-RD&C Grant Program, contact Eleanor Seaman-Bolton, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or (902) 494-4010.

BRC RD&C Grant award history:

2017 - This years grant was awarded to Dr. Aaron Newman and the RADIANT (Rehabilitative And Diagnostic Innovation in Applied NeuroTechnology) Team to support their annual summer program which is in it's 6th year. The program is a two-week Summer Institute in Neurotechnology Innovation, Commercialization, and Entrepreneurship (NICE), which runs from May 8-19th, 2017, at Dalhousie University. This will be open to upper-level undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows from across Canada and internationally.

2016 - Dr. Bernd Pohlmann-Eden and Dr. Alon Friedman received the 2016 BRC RD&C Grant to host the world’s leading epilepsy experts for the 4th Annual Halifax International Epilepsy Conference and Retreat. Their aim was to stimulate a broader conversation about epilepsy’s underlying mechanisms and what they share in common with other brain diseases, including autism, depression, dementia and schizophrenia. Read story.

2015 - Dr. Johane Robitaille received the 2015 BRC RD&C Grant to help her and her colleagues at Dalhousie host the prestigious biennial meeting of the International Society for Genetic Eye Diseases and Retinoblastoma in Halifax in August 2015. Read story.

2014 - Dr. Jim Fawcett and Dr. Rob Brownstone received the 2014 Scotiabank-BRC RD&C Grant to host the 9th International Motoneuron Meeting in Halifax. This event attracted hundreds of leading clinicians and researchers, to explore new frontiers in the understanding of how the nervous system controls movement and how this ability can be protected or restored in neurologic injury and disease. Read story.

2014 - Dr. Steven Beyea received a second BRC RD&C grant to organize and host BIOMAG 2014, the 19th international biomagnetism conference, in Halifax. This conference drew more than 700 delegates from 30 countries to share the latest technology developments and applications of biomagnetism. Read story.

2013 - Dr. Rob Brownstone received the inaugural BRC RD&C award to host the 2013 Canadian Spinal Cord Conference in Halifax. Nearly 80 scientists, clinicians and trainees took part in the national conference, which focused on the latest developments in understanding spinal cord development and function, limiting and repairing damage, and restoring lost function. Read story.