Brief Description:

The 1907 Trailblazer Award was established to encourage high-impact, step-change approaches to research in the brain and mind sciences for mental health.

Projects should represent new lines of research and be distinct from other research projects conducted by the investigator. This competition encourages innovative, unorthodox and exploratory research that may be in the early and conceptual stages of project development, but has potential for significant impact on our understanding of the brain. The generated data will enable early-career investigators to apply for larger gifts that will lead to long-term projects and create innovative and sustainable research programs.

Projects must be grounded in the study of biological mechanisms underlying brain function, cognitive processes, and/or consciousness. We support projects for basic science in addition to near-term applications (e.g. disruptive technologies and potential clinical interventions)

Applications for the 1907 Trailblazer Award should describe programs of work that aim to improve knowledge and outcomes of psychiatric illness through brain-mind research. Eligible disciplines include, but are not limited to:

Neuroscience
Neurology
Psychology
Psychiatry
Cognitive Neuroscience
Clinical Psychology
Computational Neuroscience
Neuroimaging

Description:

Neuroscience
Neurology
Psychology
Psychiatry
Cognitive Neuroscience
Clinical Psychology
Computational Neuroscience
Neuroimaging

The 1907 Research Foundation particularly encourages research that involves human patients, but projects can also focus on well-validated animal models, and/or on psychiatrically- relevant research in healthy humans or conceptual/theoretical work. The projects can be framed around a single disorder or can be transdiagnostic, e.g. with an emphasis on shared risk factors (genetic or environmental) or common neural substrates. For projects in basic science, applicants who provide an in-depth understanding of the disorder(s) they are trying to treat will be prioritized.

The key criterion in assessing applications will be the extent to which research programs bring us closer to causes & cures based on an enhanced understanding of how aberrant neurobiological and/or psychological mechanisms give rise to behavioral (objective) and psychological (subjective) symptoms. A good example of this approach is provided by the emerging discipline of computational psychiatry, which aims at uncovering the neurobiological mechanisms underlying psychiatric symptoms. By contrast, research programs that simply test the efficacy of an existing intervention are poorly aligned with our aims. Similarly, applications that follow established research paradigms - for example, using standard analytic tools on large public imaging databases - are not suitable for this call.

Application Information:

1. A four page summary of your "novel idea" addressing the following four questions (word count allocation to each question at discretion of the applicant):

What is the novel idea and what is the potential impact to the field? Explain the novel idea in lay terms. What does it hope to achieve? How can it empower others in the field to identify causes & cures?
What is the scientific rationale of the idea given current gaps in knowledge? Concise explanations are preferred.
What is your execution plan and why are you uniquely positioned to execute? What tools, resources and relationships do you have to enable you to complete the research? How do you anticipate the US$100,000 research gift to be used?
Why is 1907 Research best positioned to partner with you? Explain why your project requires dedicated unrestricted funding and why it would not be likely to be funded from traditional sources (universities, governments, other established foundations).

2. A one-page letter of reference from your department head (or higher administrative level) attesting to the applicant’s suitability for the Award, including the institution’s commitment to supporting the applicant’s project, including any additional or in-kind commitment of resources, including but not limited to relief from teaching/admin duties.

3. NIH Biosketch (limit 5 pages) Please clearly identify the date your PHD/MD degree was awarded.

Eligibility Criteria:

Applicants must be within ten years of the date when PhD/MD degree was awarded (with exceptions for career breaks including maternity and paternity leave)
Applicants will currently be employed by a university or public research institute in the US, the UK, or Canada, with full-time employment guaranteed for the duration of the project (tenure or tenure-track and international equivalents). Applicants must already work in a supervisory role (PhD, MD, Postdoctoral supervisor primary or secondary)
Applicants will have demonstrated independence from senior colleagues. They must be able to initiate and direct their own research as principal investigator, have full responsibility for running their labs and full control of their research funds. Postdoctoral fellows or adjunct faculty are not eligible to apply
Applicants will have a strong track record of scientific publications relevant to their research program
Research applications may be related to but cannot be identical to any other currently funded projects

Additional Information, Related Websites, and Proxy Instructions:

Funding and Award period:
Awards of US$100,000 will be made to successful applicants, via their institutions, for research costs. Funding is to be spent over a two-year duration and can support:
Stipends for research staff within the Award recipient’s lab

Equipment, supplies, laboratory costs and/or technician
Imaging costs
Publication fees
Patient participant expenses
Travel

In addition to the US$100,000, US$20,000 will be awarded as a cash prize payable directly to the recipient (50% after year 1, 50% after year 2). Lastly, 1907 Research will cover travel & expenses to two annual meetings.

https://www.1907-research.org/apply

Contact Information:

For questions about this application, please contact Clare Lamont at clare_lamont@hms.harvard.edu

Search Filters:

Institution

Harvard Medical School (Quad)
Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM)

Position

Instructor
Assistant Professor

Type of Competition

Limited Submission

Discipline

Translational Science

Type of Award

Early Career