When is Brain Awareness Week?

March 12-18, 2007

What Will Happen

The Brain Awareness Week is a great opportunity to learn more about how the brain functions and how to cultivate a healthy brain. The Dana Foundation and multiple partners, such as SharpBrains, will lead outreach events worldwide.

In the blog of the Dana Foundation we can read today that “To my knowledge, the brain is the only organ in the human body that is celebrated and honored for an entire week. This year, 2,000 organizations in 69 countries will observe Brain Awareness Week with activities, exhibits and competitions, most from March 12 through 18.”

SharpBrains-Related Activities During Brain Awareness Week

• Brain Fitness Awareness: 35 different Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes across the United States will distribute our Brain Fitness 101 guide and other materials to their members for free.
• Train-The-Trainer Certification: The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute network will help launch the SharpBrains Train-The-Trainer Certification to equip interested instructors across the US with the knowledge and curriculum to teach our Exercising Our Brains class. Class description: We are in charge. Neuroscientists have finally shown that, at any age, our mental activity influences the generation of new neurons and their connections, with clear guidelines to follow. We can improve our memory, concentration, decision-making, planning skills, reaction time, ability to deal with change. In this class, we will review some of the most spectacular brain research findings, discuss the implications from a user-friendly perspective, and practice working out our brains with a variety of fun, novel and engaging activities. You have probably heard “Use it or lose it”. The latest research indicates, “Use it and improve it!”
• Exercising Our Brains Class at St. James Community Center in San Francisco, California.
• March 8 Workshop: The Neuroscience of Stress and Stress Management. Description: Alvaro Fernandez, SharpBrains CEO, will present the latest neuroscience findings about the impact of stress on performance and introduce a variety of techniques to help us manage stress during Accenture’s Third Annual International Women’s Day.
• March 14 Workshop: Sharp Brains at Work. Description: Companies and employees need to adapt constantly. Learning about how the brain works and learns helps ensure smooth change management processes. We will lead this workshop at consulting firm Origo to help their consultants and clients thrive.

Other events

• You can find listings per country and city of outreach events worldwide.
• Valerie from UCSF kindly alerted us of an additional event in San Francisco:Free Public Lecture Series, at the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease, on Thursday, March 15, 2007. “Towards Better Treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease: An Update on Research Progress and Remaining Challenges” presented by Lennart Mucke, MD (Director, Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease and Chair of the Medical Scientific Advisory Council of the Alzheimer’s Association, Northern California/Northern Nevada)

Other Resources

• Brain Fitness 101 Guide
• Exercise Your Brain DVD. This one-hour and 20 minute class introduces you to the science of brain fitness and includes many engaging brain exercises you can do on your own or in a group setting.
• The Dana Guide to Brain Health book review
• Top 10 Brain Teasers
• Neuroscience Interview Series

Please spend a few minutes over the weekend to ask yourself:

- What do I know about my brain

- What would I like to know about my brain?

- What am I doing to cultivate and nurture my brain as much as I do care for other areas of my health and fitness?

We hope you engage next week to find, and share, your answers!

Please remember that you can always contact us through this blog or through the Contact Us form.