The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research has announced a C$10 million ($7.8 million) gift from the Toronto-based Azrieli Foundation in support of brain research.

The largest gift to CIFAR to date from a philanthropic foundation will establish the Azrieli Program in Brain, Mind & Consciousness, which will bring together leading researchers from around the world to explore the biological basis of human consciousness and its role in brain function and disorders. To that end, the program will draw on an interdisciplinary team of exceptional thinkers, including cognitive neuroscientists, neurologists, geneticists, anthropologists, psychologists, computational scientists, philosophers, and artists.

The gift also will help launch the CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars program, which is designed to help early-career scholars build their research networks and develop the skills needed to become leaders in global research.

"CIFAR's multidisciplinary and global approach to addressing the world's most complex issues makes them a perfect home for the collaborative research that can bring about breakthroughs in brain research, the last frontier of science," said Naomi Azrieli, chair and CEO of the Azrieli Foundation. "The Azrieli Foundation seeks opportunities to foster excellence in science, investing in the work of both outstanding senior researchers and early-career scholars."