EBC was present last week at the 10th World Congress of Neuroscience, organized by EBC member, the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO). Held every four years since 1982, the IBRO World Congress is now one of the most prestigious international scientific meetings.

The congress was held in Daegu, South Korea and was organized in collaboration with Federation of Asian-Oceanian Neuroscience Societies (FAONS) and brought together over 3500 participants from around the world to attend.

The congress was an excellent opportunity for EBC to showcase the European Brain Research Area (EBRA) project at the international level, with information available at an exhibition stand throughout the 5-day congress and presented at the International Brain Initiative meetings.

EBC’s broader advocacy and outreach work was also showcased together with EBRA, both at the exhibition

stand and during the IBRO and IBSP-UNESCO Global Engagement & Outreach Event in support of basic research in the brain sciences. The session focused on the urgent and continuing importance of supporting research in the basic sciences, with a special focus on current coordination, engagement and outreach efforts in the brain sciences. It featured speakers from the policymaking and scientific communities who are directly involved in addressing awareness and funding challenges, as well as creating opportunities that aim to better coordinate diverse stakeholder groups and resources towards more effective, equitable and sustainable research expectations and outcomes. EBC Executive Director, Frédéric Destrebecq presented the European perspective of EBC amongst speakers from Latin America, North America, Central Asia, Oceania and Africa.

Furthermore, EBC was happy to be invited to participate at the two-day International Brain Initiative (IBI) Coordinating Body Meeting and to present both EBC as a new organisation to the IBI and EBRA, as an initiative fully in alignment with the missions of IBI. The IBI brings together seven large-scale nationally-sponsored neuroscience projects: the Japan Brain/MINDS, the Korea Brain Initiative, the Australian Brain Alliance, the Canadian Brain Research Strategy, the China Brain Project, the E.U. Human Brain Project (HBP), and the U.S. BRAIN Initiative have committed to leveraging
and aligning efforts to maximize efficiency and combined impact. EBC looks forward to further engaging with the Initiative.