We are honored to announce that the paper “Brain health-directed policymaking: A new concept to strengthen democracy”, co-authored by EMEA President, Prof Rym Ayadi and EMEA Advisory Board member, Harris Eyre MD PhD, has been published by Brookings Institution as Working Paper 178 – October 2022.
Democracies are increasingly under siege. Beyond direct external (e.g., warfare) and internal (e.g., populism, extremism) threats to democratic nations, multiple democracy-weakening factors are converging in our modern world. Brain health challenges, including mental, neurologic, and substance use disorders, social determinants of health, long COVID, undesired effects of technology, mis- and disinformation, and educational, health, and gender disparities, are associated with substantial economic and sociopolitical impediments. Herein, we argue that thriving democracies can distinguish themselves through provision of environments that enable each citizen to achieve their full brain health potential conducive to both personal and societal well-being. Gearing policymaking towards equitable and quality brain health may prove essential to combat brain challenges, promote societal cohesion, and boost economic productivity. We outline emerging policy innovations directed at building “pro-democratic brain health” across individual, communal, national, and international levels. While extensive research is warranted to further validate these approaches, brain health-directed policymaking harbors potential as a novel concept for democracy strengthening.
The paper is available at https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Brain-health-directed-policymaking_Final.pdf
Brookings also published a blog post on the subject under the title Brain capital: A new vector for democracy strengthening
Paper authors: Ryan Abbott, David G. Angeler, Rym Ayadi, Virginia Bennett, Michael Berk, Robert M. Bilder, Andrew Carlo, Shuo Chen, Lynne Corner, Mark T. D’Esposito, Walter D. Dawson, Frederic Destrebecq, Harris A. Eyre, Michael Freeman, Carol Graham, James T. Hackett, William Hynes, Agustin Ibanez, Dilip V. Jeste, Jorge Jraissati, Facundo Manes, Michael D. Matthews, Chee H. Ng, Wolfgang H. Oertel, Ian H. Robertson, Karen Rommelfanger, Antonella Santuccione Chadha, Zoltan Sarnyai, Erin Smith, Jair C. Soares, Eric A. Storch, Sebastian F. Winter, Christine Yu Moutier
The Brookings Institution is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington DC, the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global economy, and economic development. Brookings brings together more than 300 leading experts in government and academia from all over the world who provide the highest quality research, policy recommendations, and analysis on a full range of public policy issues.
The Brain Capital Alliance brings together world-class contributors from various backgrounds to explore approaches to building Brain Capital at societal scale. The Brain Capital concept aims at providing a better understanding of the economic value that can be derived through identifying and unlocking latent human potential. The Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association (EMEA), is one of the founding partners of the Brain Capital Alliance.
