DECLARATION OF INTENT
TO CREATE A LATIN AMERICAN BRAIN INITIATIVE
On the occasion of the LATBrain Initiative Meeting hosted by the Sociedad de Neurociencias del Uruguay at the Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable in Montevideo, Uruguay, the participants, representing different Neuroscience related Institutions from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, and Uruguay,
Sign the following Declaration of Intent:
- The participants recognize that understanding the Brain is an effort so large and complex that no single society or country will be able to tackle the challenge to measure, mapping, imaging, modeling, simulate, understand, imitate, diagnose and heal the Brain.
- Therefore, the participants commit to form an Alliance, the Latin American Brain Initiative (LATBrain), involving their Institutions and other learned institutions related to Brain Research in Latin America.
- The LATBrain members are committed to combine efforts and resources to produce innovative outcomes that leverage and align them to advance the knowledge of the brain with neuroethics as an essential part of the initiative, respecting diversity (gender, ethnic, economic or others).
- The Initiative also recognizes that the challenge of understanding Brain function and improve health includes other fields of science and industry.
- The members commit to supporting and training the next generation of neuroscientists in interdisciplinary science and global collaboration.
- The aim is to maximize efficiency and generate impact, and, in this way, optimize the value and the return of the investment made by each Country.
- The participants recognize that LATBrain will further increase the impact on the society of new knowledge on the Brain if the efforts are embedded and in cooperation with their stakeholders: government, policymakers, academia, industry, non-governmental organizations, entrepreneurs and citizens, especially patients.
- LATBrain also understands its mission to cooperate with other International Brain Initiatives.
- The participants therefore commit to explore and implement a coordinated strategic plan for development of Brain sciences in Latin America to contribute with the international efforts that are being carried out globally to understand the Brain.
- The participants and their Institutions commit also to capitalize existing Organizations, such as national Neuroscience Societies, Networks, Federations, Institutes, Centers, and others, to promote this Initiative.
- The participants also commit to engage in meaningful dialogue with citizens, patients, and all relevant communities to understand their concerns and communicate transparently on the issues, opportunities and challenges arising from this Initiative.
- To achieve these initial goals, the participants move forward to engage more stakeholders and to set up the necessary framework to facilitate their collaboration.
- Societies and Institutions interested in LATBrain are invited to join.
The next meeting of the LATBrain Initiative is planned to be held at the beginning of 2020, and followed by a workshop under the framework of the next Congress of the Federation of Neuroscience Societies in Latin American and Caribbean, in Belen, Brazil, September 2020.
This Declaration of Intent is non-binding and not a legal instrument. It specifically does not engage national or international authorities or institutional legal entities. A formalization of the collaboration is envisaged after further consultations.
August 31st 2019
Montevideo, Uruguay
Francesco M. Rossi
Sociedad de Neurociencias del Uruguay, Presidente
Elaine Del Bel
Federación de Sociedades de Neurociencia en América Latina y el Caribe, Presidente
Diana Jerusalinsky
Sociedad Argentina de Investigación en Neurociencias
Juan Montiel
Centro de Investigaciones Biomédicas de la Universidad Diego Portales
Osvaldo Uchitel
Red Argentina de Neurociencias
Rómulo Fuentes
NeuroSur
Pedro A Valdes-Sosa
Proyecto Cerebro Cubano
Luis Velazquez
Academia de Ciencias de Cuba, Presidente
Raúl Russo
International Brain Research Organization-Latin American Regional Committee (IBRO-LARC)
This statement is supported by international representatives from the USA, UK, Australia, Cuba and the International Brain Initiative (IBI) who participated in the meeting and several Latin American Institutions such as the Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencias (Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile), Instituto Leloir (Argentina), Instituto de Fisiología Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (UBA-CONICET, Argentina), Instituto do Cérebro de la UFRN (Brasil), Instituto Milenio de Neurociencias (Chile), Centro de Neurociencias de Cuba, Latin American Brain Mapping Network (Labman), Global Brain Consortium, and Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, among others.