The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) will host its 2026 International Mental Health Research Symposium, featuring presentations by the Outstanding Achievement Prizewinners and the recipient of the Pardes Humanitarian Prize in Mental Health on Friday, October 30, 2026 from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm EDT at the Kaufman Music Center, 129 West 67th Street (between Broadway & Amsterdam), New York City. Speakers will share the latest research advances in suicide prevention and child and adolescent mental health.
The event is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance. Register Here: https://www.bbrf.org
Welcome & Introduction
- Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., President & CEO, Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
- Carol A. Tamminga, M.D., Moderator; BBRF Scientific Council Member
Presentations
- Precision Psychiatry: Encouraging Progress and the Challenges Ahead
Steven A. Kushner, M.D., Ph.D., Columbia University, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Stavros Niarchos Foundation for Precision Psychiatry & Mental Health - Advancing an Inflammatory Subtype of Depression
Andrew H. Miller, M.D., Emory University of Medicine - Nurturing the Developing Brain: How Early Experience Shapes the Brain and Children’s Mental Health
Cynthia Rogers, M.D., Washington University School of Medicine, Departments of Psychiatry and Pediatrics - Memory and Engrams
Sheena Josselyn, Ph.D., FRSC, Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto - The Suicide Prevention Movement: Translating Science into Action
Christine Yu Moutier, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention; Recipient, 2026 Pardes Humanitarian Prize in Mental Health
The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) awards research grants to develop improved treatments, cures, and methods of prevention for mental illness. These illnesses include addiction, ADHD, anxiety, autism, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, depression, eating disorders, OCD, PTSD, and schizophrenia, as well as research on suicide prevention. Since 1987, the Foundation has awarded more than $487 million to fund more than 5,900 leading scientists around the world. 100% of every dollar donated for research is invested in research. BBRF operating expenses are covered by separate foundation grants. BBRF is the producer of the Emmy®-nominated public television series Healthy Minds with Dr. Jeffrey Borenstein, which aims to remove the stigma of mental illness and demonstrate that with help, there is hope.