Brain Awareness Campaign

Students interact with a service dog at a Brain Awareness Week event at the National Museum of Health and Medicine.

Copyright © 2014, Society for Neuroscience. All rights reserved. Photo by Joe Shymanski.

Two graduate students explain how neurons work to the attendees of a Brain Awareness Week forum.

Anne Hart, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

Graduate student Shaima Alothman teaches local students about the brain at a 2014 Brain Discovery Fair at University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, KS.

Angela Pierce of University of Kansas Medical Center, 2014.

At University of Maryland, Baltimore, Alexandra Person won first place in the brain art contest with her Georgia O'Keefe's Mind in Bloom.

Norbert Myslinski, PhD, University Maryland School of Dentistry (2004).

The Jagiellonian University in Poland sponsored a public lecture on the brain.

Elzbieta Malgorzata Pyza, PhD, Jagiellonian University (2005).

Students create neuron models out of pipe cleaners and foam balls at a Brain Awareness Week event.

Copyright © 2014, Society for Neuroscience. All rights reserved. Photo by Joe Shymanski.

Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen learns more about the brain at the 2014 Miami Brain Fair in Miami, Florida.

Photo by Eric Weiss Photography, 2014.

At the Eskisehir, Osmangazi University’s Folklore Research and Training Center in Turkey, dancers taught about the brain’s control of movement.

Ferhan Esen, MSc, PhD, Eskisehir Osmangazi University (2007).

The Society for Applied Psychological Research in the Performing Arts demonstrated music in the brain with an electroencephalogram (EEG).

Mark Zinn, Society for Applied Psychological Research in the Performing Arts, Dublin, CA (2007).

Students examine a human brain at a National Museum of Health and Medicine Brain Awareness Week event.

Copyright © 2014, Society for Neuroscience. All rights reserved. Photo by Joe Shymanski.

The Brain Awareness Week campaign unites families, schools, and communities in a worldwide celebration of the brain. The Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives founded the now-global campaign in 1996. Since its start, more than 2,800 partners in 82 countries have participated in the campaign. The Society for Neuroscience and many others serve as partners.

Although the week is observed during the third week of March, many programs operate throughout the year. Watch the ABCs of BAW webinar to learn tips and resources to get involved. 

Resources from the Society for Neuroscience: 

• Request Brain Facts books and additional educational resources by emailing baw@sfn.org 
• Dive into the at-home Brain Awareness Week event, BAW Online

Additional Resources from The Dana Foundation: 

• Brain Awareness Week International Calendar of Events
• Learn about the benefits of becoming a Brain Awareness Week Partner
• Submit and read Partner Reports of successful Brain Awareness Week events 
• Receive free educational materials and giveaways for your event, including posters, brochures, pencils, and stickers

Educate: Brain research is not just for experts. Share the wonders of neuroscience with the help of BrainFacts.org.

• Hold a public lecture featuring a local neuroscientist.
• Organize a brain fair with crafts and games for families.
• Share brain health tips with a senior citizen group.

Get Creative: Explore neuroscience your way.

• Support brain awareness through music, video, or dance.
• Have an art display or poetry contest inspired by the brain.
• Write an op-ed or letter to the editor for your local newspaper.

Compete: Encourage interest in the brain with contests, games, and challenges.

• Hold a brain trivia night in your community.
• Get involved in a Brain Bee as a participant, organizer or volunteer.

Promote: Spread the word about Brain Awareness Week in your community.

• Post your event on the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives calendar at www.dana.org.
• Publicize events to various audiences: invite schools or teachers, post fliers in libraries or businesses, or write a press release about the campaign for local media.

Support: Seek sponsors that can support or fund outreach activities.

• Reach out to neighborhood businesses and organizations for volunteers, event space, or food.
• Find a partner to help fund initiatives or provide event materials.