British Neuroscience Association secures £450k from Gatsby

10th Apr 2019

The British Neuroscience Association (BNA) is delighted to announce that the Gatsby Charitable Foundation has awarded the charity £450,000, to help develop its work, supporting and advancing neuroscience in the UK. A major component of this will be a significant programme of activities, promoting and supporting credibility in neuroscience research over the next ten years.

Working on behalf of the neuroscience profession, the BNA’s ‘credibility in neuroscience’ programme will encompass reproducibility, replicability and reliability, uniting what’s best for neuroscience with what’s best for neuroscientists.

On a broader level, the funding will also support the BNA through its new strategic plan, increasing membership and creating new events and opportunities for neuroscientists in the UK.

Anne Cooke, Chief Executive of BNA, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have received this funding from Gatsby. It will help us reach across the neuroscience community to open up new opportunities and challenges, whilst creating a sustainable future for 21st century neuroscience.

“Currently, within neuroscience, we don’t always reward the best science – science which lays equal value on both positive and negative outcomes, recognizes the importance of replication, and can be slow to progress. Instead, it’s often the fast, novel, ‘sexy’ research findings which get most attention and, in turn, the publications, promotions and awards. This can lead to skewed understanding of scientific phenomena, huge pressure on researchers to produce the ‘right’ results, and non-reproducible research. All of which is ultimately detrimental to neuroscience and to society as a whole.

“The Gatsby funding is invaluable to helping us foster and support the tools, skills and behavioural change that’s a critical development for neuroscience, so that credible and reproducible research can be achieved and valued.”

Gary Wilson, Head of Science Portfolio, Gatsby Charitable Foundation, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting the BNA. It’s an exciting time for UK neuroscience, and we believe the BNA is in a unique position to build and support a cohesive country-wide neuroscience community for sharing findings and ideas, promoting knowledge exchange, brokering relationships across specialities, and transforming how research is carried out within the sector.

“At Gatsby, we believe in supporting actvities that can make a real difference, and we look forward to helping the BNA become a strong professional society for 21^st century UK neuroscience and deliver their ambitious strategy for driving forward credible and sustainable research across the UK and beyond.”