The Royal’s Winter Garden was full of people the morning of February 23, gathered for a mysterious press conference announcing the largest individual donation The Royal has ever received.
Five people in mirrored masks and lab coats mingled with the crowd, attracting raised eyebrows and questions. Attendees would later learn that these enigmatic figures represent the five as-of-yet unknown young researchers whose lives will be changed by the day’s announcement.
Eight people holding blank blue boxes paraded in. One by one, they flipped the boxes to reveal the donation: $6,000,000. All from an anonymous donor.
This money gives The Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research (IMHR), affiliated with the University of Ottawa, an opportunity to create a new research incubator called Emerging Research Innovators in Mental Health (e-RIMh), the first of its kind in Canada focusing solely on mental health research.
“We still diagnose mental illness based on symptoms, not with blood tests or brain scans. In terms of treatment, even though there are glimmers of hope, more than 60 per cent of those seeking help still do not respond adequately to the treatments we have to offer,” explained Dr. Zul Merali, former President and CEO of the IMHR.
"We need to create an ecosystem to help grow, nurture and unleash the ideas of brilliant young minds."“We want to change this reality,” says Dr. Merali.
The key to this transformation? Original thinking, says Dr. Merali. And where better to find these thinkers than among young researchers?
“In today’s world, young researchers often have a hard time launching their careers and securing research grants to test their ideas,” he lamented. “We need to create an ecosystem to help grow, nurture and unleash the ideas of brilliant young minds.”
That’s where e-RIMh comes in. It’s a chance for five of the best and brightest early-career researchers to put their careers into overdrive, while working in a supportive environment alongside experts in their field, with salary and grant support for up to five years.
The IMHR encourages applicants to propose highly original projects exploring innovative ideas that may have scant supporting evidence at the moment, but hold the potential to transform current thinking.
This means that e-RIMh is a chance to do work that may be difficult to get funded elsewhere, with financial and professional support and access to cutting-edge technology, including our Brain Imaging Centre.
"Curiosity is a driver of innovation and mental health needs more of it."“The donor believes that curiosity drives innovation, and that mental health needs more of it,” says Nancy Stanton, Acting President and CEO of The Royal’s Foundation. “By fueling the careers of bright young minds willing to defy convention and explore new approaches, curiosity can lead to new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat mental illness.”