On 3 March 2026, the International Brain Initiative (IBI) — Crosscultural Working Group, together with the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development (EMRTD), co-organized a side event titled “Data Sovereignty and the Right to Development for Indigenous Peoples” during the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.

The UNESCO House in Paris hosted a landmark international neurodiplomatic gathering that placed brain health at the centre of the global scientific and policy agenda.

The IBI congratulates Dr. Judy Illes, IBI Immediate Past Chair, on her promotion to Officer of the Order of Canada. This distinguished recognition reflects her groundbreaking contributions to biomedical ethics and neuroscience and for being a proponent of Indigenous knowledge as a vital source from which to reframe Western Traditional medicine.

The International Brain Initiative (IBI) congratulates Dr. Alfred K. Njamnshi, IBI Neurodiplomacy Working Group Lead, for his appointment as a member of the International Brain Research Organization Africa Regional Committee (IBRO-ARC).

The International Brain Initiative (IBI) is excited to announce that Dr. Toshihisa Ohtsuka and Dr. Jialin Zheng have assumed the role of Co-Chairs of the IBI Executive Committee.

The Korea Brain Research Institute and the IBI Emotional Working Group recently hosted the 2025 IBI Daegu Conference on October 20-22, 2025 in Daegu, Korea. The conference was an inspiring gathering of distinguished international speakers, faculty members, trainees, and guests from both local and international partners dedicated to advancing scientific understanding and fostering new perspectives on the ways emotional states influence cognition, behavior, and psychiatric conditions.

The IBI is pleased to share that Dr. Anthony J. Hannan has assumed the role of Chair of the IBI Executive Committee.

After two years dedicated to building a unifying framework for stakeholder initiatives in brain research, implementing transnational funding and facilitating other essential activities to support and enhance the partnership’s objectives, the CSA BrainHealth consortium hosted its Final Conference on October 15, 2025 at Brussels, Belgium. 

The IBI Neurodiplomacy working group was launched soon after the first African high-level science summit held in Yaoundé, Cameroon, in July and August 2024. The goal of the platform is for neurodiplomacy stakeholders worldwide to engage and accelerate the vision of IBI for the promotion of brain health for all people.

Congratulations to Dr. Judy Illes, IBI Chair, for receiving the CSPC 2025 Trailblazer Award in Science for Policy in recognition of her trailblazing work and its profound impact on policy making in Canada and around the world!

In parallel with the Science Summit during the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York, the IBI delegation engaged in multiple sessions on global brain health and economy.

WHO has recognized mental health and, more recently, brain health as public health priorities. This momentum was further advanced at the National, Regional, and International Plans for Brain and Mental Health: Bridging the Gaps (June 12–13, 2025) symposium organized by the Swiss Brain Health Plan and the Swiss Brain Health Foundation. The event united global experts around a transformative vision: brain health must be embraced as a positive, fundamental component of overall health and human potential beyond the absence of disease.

Dr. Judy Illes, IBI Chair, delivered a keynote lecture on Advancing New Partnerships for Global Brain Health at the first summit of the Latin American Brain (LATBrain) Initiative on September 4, 2025 at the Aging Research Center, South Unit of the Center for Research and Advanced Studies in Mexico City, Mexico.

IBI Chair, Dr. Judy Illes, recently hosted a discussion with Dr. Luisa Rocha on LATBrain’s role in global neuroscience collaboration. Dr. Rocha is Mexico’s official representative in LATBrain and is the general coordinator of the initiative. She is a Professor in the Department of Pharmacobiology at the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (CINVESTAV) in Mexico City, Mexico.

The Board of Directors of the International Neuroethics Society has voted to appoint Professor Marcello Ienca, IBI Neuroethics Working Group Lead, to the position of President-Elect for one year and to serve as its next President for two years starting in 2026.

No opening of the cranium, no cutting into the brain, no blood. Today's precise psychosurgery presents options for patients with treatment-resistant disorders. IBI Chair, Dr. Judy Illes, together with other experts, discuss the ethics of emerging neurotechnologies.

Dr. Melissa Perreault, IBI Crosscultural Working Group Lead, delivered a keynote lecture on diversity, equity and inclusivity in neuroscience at the 29th Annual Meeting of the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology on July 14, 2025 at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

The goal of this new IBI initiative is to advocate for the meaningful involvement of Indigenous persons and communities in new technologies, particularly those related to the brain and mind.

The International Brain Initiative (IBI) is pleased to announce that Dr. Noor Al Dahhan (Postdoctoral Research Fellow, SickKids), has been awarded the 2025 IBI–Canada Early Career Neuroscientist Award.

IBI Crosscultural Working Group member, Dr. Olivia Matshabane, was recently awarded one of the 2025 International Brain Research Organization (IBRO) Rising Stars Awards.