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Philanthropic investors unite to establish BD²: Breakthrough Discoveries for Thriving with Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder affects more than 40 million people worldwide. The condition is complex and presents differently from individual to individual. More than 70 percent of those with bipolar disorder are misdiagnosed at least once. On average, it takes seven years from when symptoms first appear to when bipolar disorder is correctly diagnosed. With more than $100 million as a foundational investment, BD² is a first-of-its-kind organization that brings together cross-disciplinary science under a single umbrella to accelerate discovery and shorten the time it takes to translate findings to improved diagnosis and care.
- BD² is funding geneticists, clinicians, brain imaging experts, molecular biologists, and neuroscientists all focusing on understanding bipolar disorder
- Data from across the initiative is shared in a single platform to facilitate collaboration across the community
- The first round of research funding was announced in March 2023, just six months after BD² launched
The organization celebrates its first year with more than $60M in funding to the community.
Let's talk about how we can partner for impact.
BD²’s integrated programs will create a collaborative community focused on accelerating ideas and new treatments [for people with bipolar disorder].
BD²’s integrated programs will create a collaborative community focused on accelerating ideas and new treatments [for people with bipolar disorder].
Incentivize entrepreneurs using technological innovation to increase farm production in Africa
In April 2021, the Milken Institute and the Motsepe Foundation launched the Milken-Motsepe Prize in AgriTech to incentivize entrepreneurs using technological innovation to increase farm productivity, decrease food loss, and increase economic value to farmers in Africa. The Institute undertook an extensive ideation, landscape, and design process to develop the competition, employing advisory services with more than 50 experts from 20 countries on five continents. These experts in their respective fields revealed critical insights facing African farmers that informed a challenge statement for the competition: to increase economic value to small- and medium-sized farms in Africa by increasing productivity on the farm and/or decreasing post-harvest loss.
- More than 3,300 teams from 105 countries registered for the competition
- After a rigorous evaluation process conducted in partnership with the World Food Programme, the pool of registrants was narrowed to 25 finalists, who were given $10,000 to field test their innovations across 16 countries in Africa
- Five teams were ultimately selected as winners and attended the Milken Institute Global Conference in May 2023
- The Milken Institute and the Motsepe Foundation awarded a $1 million grand prize, a $300,000 second prize, a $150,000 third prize, and two $100,000 bonus prizes
“Bringing talent to the fore and supporting entrepreneurs is an intentional goal of the competition.”
“Bringing talent to the fore and supporting entrepreneurs is an intentional goal of the competition.”
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Facilitating collaborations and working with families, foundations, and corporations to align values and shape philanthropic programming.
Guiding donors through complex medical research and clinical systems to uncover where an infusion of funds would make the greatest impact.
Channeling philanthropic resources to advance entrenched challenges and improve social equity.
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Milken Institute Philanthropy creates opportunities for high-impact philanthropists and other stakeholders to come together, learn from and with each other, and take action.
From Our Leaders
Melissa StevensExecutive Vice President, MI PhilanthropyWhy widespread philanthropic coordination is so elusive: Lessons from the sectorTime and again, there are clarion calls within the philanthropic sector for more coordination among funders – but so far, no remedy has endured.
Cara Altimus, PhDManaging Director, MI PhilanthropyIntentional Philanthropy to Diversify ScienceLast week, Michael Bloomberg announced a $150 million gift to my alma mater, Johns Hopkins University, to provide permanent funding for a hundred STEM PhD students from minority-serving institutions.
Emily Musil Church, PhDSenior Director, MI PhilanthropyNovFeed Wins Inaugural Milken Motsepe Prize For AgriTechNovFeed, a Tanzania-based biotech company, has won the $1 million grand prize in the inaugural Milken-Motsepe Prize in AgriTech Awards.
- Melissa StevensExecutive Vice President, MI PhilanthropyPhilanthropists Discover the Value of 'Sunsetting'
Donors who want to make an immediate impact and avoid ideological drift are setting up foundations that must spend their whole endowment and go out of business in a fixed period of time.
Hear It from People Like You
Berit AshlaDIRECTOR OF PHILANTHROPY | FREEMONT GROUP
Kent DautenCHAIRMAN | DAUTEN FAMILY FOUNDATION
Cindy CitroneFOUNDER AND CEO | CITRONE 33
Graham MacmillanPRESIDENT | VISA FOUNDATION
Experience, Expertise, and a Team Ready to Build Your Vision
Milken Institute Philanthropy advisors bring to our work a unique combination of skills, experience, subject matter expertise, empathy, a rigorous, systems-thinking approach, and a deep commitment to equity.
We see the big picture and how each piece should fit together. We look for where and why progress is stalling and offer recommendations on which levers will lead to lasting change.
We are a diverse team working shoulder to shoulder with philanthropists to make systems work better and faster. Leveraging the talent, convening power, and resources of the Milken Institute's deep, influential network, we connect philanthropists to new peers, collaborators, and thought leaders.
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All voices are heard, all perspectives considered. We come together to think expansively and solve the challenges that matter.