A Year of Change, Community, and Commitment

A look back at the year underscores just how dramatically the landscape for science in the United States has changed in a short period of time. Federal initiatives have slowed or scaled back, planning horizons have become uncertain, and the resulting disruptions continue to reverberate through research organizations, training pipelines, and the wider scientific community. It’s a powerful reminder that fulfilling our mission to advance neuroscience for societal benefit requires collectively strengthening the broader systems and policies that enable scientific inquiry to thrive.

With this profound destabilization of the landscape, I believe that collaborative efforts to strengthen the relationship between science and society are even more critical. Looking back on the year, I am pleased to share highlights made possible by the dedication of Dana Foundation staff, board directors, grantees, partners, and others who joined us in advancing neuroscience for societal good. You can also read more about the Foundation’s work in our first impact report on our neuroscience & society mission.

• Celebrating 75 Years and Honoring Neuroscience & Society Champions
  At our 75^th anniversary reception in June, we presented our inaugural Neuroscience & Society Champion Awards to Karen S. Rommelfanger, Ph.D., and Kafui Dzirasa, M.D., Ph.D. We applaud their leadership in neuroethics, mentoring, community engagement, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• Building Community within the Dana Center Initiative and Beyond
  We convened Dana Center Initiative (DCI) partners from UCLA-Charles R. Drew University, Loyola University Chicago, and Mass General Brigham. Our partners shared the progress they have made since the launch of the DCI Initiative in 2024 to deepen community-partnered neuroscience, help strengthen STEM identity in young students, and expand equitable access to neurotechnology. Beyond the Dana Center Initiative Community, we supported mentorship of cross-disciplinary neuroscience scholars and practitioners through the Dana Reception for Neuroscience & Society at the annual Society for Neuroscience conference and the Dana Career Network.
• Advancing Dialogue on Trust and Reciprocity
  At the 80^th United Nations General Assembly Science Summit, we co-hosted a Brain Days panel on community-partnered neuroscience research, highlighting how reciprocal relationships between scientists and communities can strengthen public trust and enrich the research process. In global forums such as the Science and Technology in Society (STS) Forum in Kyoto, we also contributed to international dialogue on the societal dimensions of emerging brain science.
• Supporting Ethics Frameworks in Areas of Accelerated Innovation
  We supported ongoing efforts to strengthen ethical and societal guidance for increasingly sophisticated neuroscience research models, including a meeting at the storied Asilomar conference grounds focused on organoid and assembloid research and potential transplantation into animal models. Sergiu Pasca, M.D., a co-organizer of this meeting, also joined us for an episode of our NeuroSociety Stories video series to discuss the promise and responsibilities inherent to research using neural organoids and assembloids. In parallel, we continued to highlight collaborative approaches to responsible neurotechnology development, including pathways that incorporate ethics, user perspectives and public engagement into the earliest stages of brain device design.
• Enabling Fundamental Conditions for Neuroscience and Society Work
  In response to widespread funding instability, we introduced rapid response bridge funding to help stabilize at-risk projects and streamlined our internal processes to ensure timely support for researchers, practitioners, and communicators. We also started supporting fundamental, broader science enterprise work to strengthen credible communication, science-informed policymaking, and the continuity of the research workforce.

Looking Ahead to 2026 and a Word of Gratitude

As we look beyond our 75th year, we recognize both the opportunities and great responsibility ahead of us. Advances in brain science are accelerating, and communities are raising important questions about equity, access, governance, and impact. Meeting this moment will require scientific excellence paired with humility, sustained listening, and collaboration across disciplines and sectors.

We are grateful to everyone who contributed to this year’s progress: researchers, educators, health practitioners, ethicists, legal scholars, community leaders, science writers, students, philanthropic partners, and many others. Together, they are helping build a future in which communities recognize and experience the full promise of neuroscience.

Thank you for your continued engagement with the Dana Foundation’s mission. Wishing you a warm and restorative holiday season.