Viviane Poupon
Moderator and Introduction
Brain Canada
Brain Canada President and CEO Viviane Poupon is committed to addressing gaps in the Canadian brain research landscape, especially in the areas of mental health research, platform support, capacity building through early-career funding and talent retention. Her leadership has been integral to the foundation’s mission to accelerate, amplify and fund brain research across Canada. Through her thoughtful guidance, Brain Canada is making significant strides in advancing our knowledge of the brain. With more than 100 partners and over $400 million invested to date, Brain Canada is the leading brain research funder and convenor in the country.
Benjamin Goldstein, MD, PhD
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) | University of Toronto
Dr. Benjamin Goldstein is the Scientific Director of the Centre for Youth Bipolar Disorder (CYBD), a child and adolescent psychiatrist at CAMH and a professor of psychiatry and pharmacology at the University of Toronto. His work focuses on teenagers who have, or are at familial risk for, bipolar disorder. His team studies the link between bipolar disorder and heart disease to help prevent and treat these illnesses in ways that improve the overall mental and physical health of young people.
Georg Northoff, MD, PhD, FRCPC
University of Ottawa | The Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research (IMHR)
Dr. Georg Northoff is a philosopher, a neuroscientist and a psychiatrist from Germany, now based in Ottawa as the head of the Mind, Brain, and Neuroethics Research Unit at the Royal’s IMHR. Dr. Northoff studies the relationship between the brain and the mind, specifically how the brain can create consciousness, emotions and the concept of the self, and how these processes shape mental illness. A professor at the University of Ottawa, he also investigates the brain-heart connection to understand how it affects both mental and physical health, with the goal improving diagnosis and treatments. His latest book, “Neurowaves. Brain, Time and Consciousness,” was published in 2023.
Roger Zemek, MD, PhD
University of Ottawa | Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) | 360 Concussion Care
Dr. Roger Zemek is a pediatric emergency physician at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), where he also serves as a Senior Scientist at the CHEO Research Institute. He is a professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine and a Clinical Research Chair in pediatric concussion at the University of Ottawa, and he is the co-founder and Scientific Director at 360 Concussion Care. Dr. Zemek is the Principal Investigator of TRANSCENDENT, one of the largest and most comprehensive concussion research programs in the world. Internationally recognized as a leading voice in concussion science, he is the lead author of internationally adopted pediatric concussion guidelines, and he has helped shape best practices for the diagnosis, management and prediction of concussion recovery.
Pia Wintermark, MD
Montreal Children’s Hospital | Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC)
Dr. Pia Wintermark is a pediatrician and neonatologist currently working at the Montreal Children’s Hospital and the RI-MUHC. She founded the NeoBrainLab, where her research explores the causes and effects of brain damage in babies. An associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics at McGill, she seeks to improve the medical care of sick babies in the neonatal intensive care unit and to develop new ways to prevent or repair brain damage, aiming to give sick babies the best possible start in life.
Lesley Fellows, MDCM, DPhil, FCAHS
McGill University | McGill University Health Centre | Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital
Dr. Lesley Fellows is a neurologist and neuroscientist who specializes in disorders of cognition. Her research focuses on how the brain controls decision-making, thinking, emotions and personality, and how damage to the frontal lobe can affect these processes. Her work also contributes to understanding the emotional and motivational changes that happen with mental illness and medical conditions that affect the brain, such as HIV. Dr. Fellows serves as McGill’s Vice-President (Health Affairs) and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences and is a professor of neurology and neurosurgery at McGill.
Philip Jai Johnson, PhD, CPsych
Dr. Philip Jai Johnson is a Clinical Psychologist and sex therapist with over 15 years of experience working with adults and couples across the lifespan. He specializes in the treatment of compulsive sexual behaviour, sexual functioning difficulties, infidelity and betrayal, as well as 2SLGBTQ+ mental health. Dr. Johnson earned his PhD in Clinical Psychology from McGill University, followed by two renowned postdoctoral fellowships in sexual health at the University of Minnesota Medical School and Columbia University in New York. Dr. Johnson is dedicated to training the next generation of sex therapists and advancing conversations on sexuality across the lifespan. His work on aging and intimacy has been featured on CBC Gem and Zoomer TV.
Kris Noakes
Kris Noakes is a citizen of the Anishinabek Nation, a member of Nipissing First Nation and a community advocate at the municipal, provincial and federal levels. Kris lives with a rare genetic form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a degenerative and terminal neurological disorder in which the brain loses the ability to communicate with the body’s muscles. She shares her experiences and perspectives, reflecting on the journey of multiple generations of her family who have been diagnosed with ALS. She continues to advocate for equitable access to drugs and treatments, Open Science, as well as investments into ALS research and community support. Along with advocacy, she has helped increase the awareness and understanding of ALS within the Canadian healthcare system, provincial and federal governments and internationally at the United Nations General Assembly.
Peter Liu, MD, FRCPC
Moderator and closing remarks
University of Ottawa | University of Toronto | University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI)
Dr. Peter Liu is a cardiologist and a professor of medicine at the University of Ottawa and the University of Toronto. As the director of the Cardiac Function Laboratory at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI), he seeks to improve our understanding of heart failure and cardiac inflammation, to better identify and diagnose these diseases at early stage and to create new personalized treatments. Formerly the Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President of Research of the UOHI, Dr. Liu now serves as the co-scientific director of the Brain-Heart Interconnectome (BHI).
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