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The Paulo Gontijo Award encourages knowledge and values research of excellence. The award is granted annually to young researchers that investigate issues associated with ALS, particularly those dealing with the causes and treatment of this disease. 

Applications are now being accepted for the 17th PG Award which will be presented at the 36th International Symposium on ALS/MND in San Diego, USA. 

Application deadline: 13 September

Find out more and apply

The Forbes Norris Award was established in 1994 to honour the legacy of Dr. Forbes “Ted” Norris (1928–1993), a neurologist who dedicated his life to supporting people living with ALS/MND. The award recognizes individuals who contribute to the management and advancement of understanding ALS/MND to the benefit of people living with the disease.

To be considered for the award, candidates must:

• Play a major role in delivering outstanding ALS/MND patient care
• Contribute significantly to medical literature in clinical management or basic science related to ALS/MND
• Be part of a team engaged in ongoing research into ALS/MND care, management, or basic science

The award is presented annually during the opening ceremony of the MND Association’s International Symposium on ALS/MND. If no suitable candidate is nominated in a given year, the award will not be granted. Please note that current Board of Directors are not eligible for nomination.

Nomination deadline: 15 September 2025

Find out more and apply

Established in 2000, the Humanitarian Award recognizes non-scientific contributions that have a global impact on the quality of life for people affected by ALS/MND. 

To be considered for the award, candidates must:

• Have demonstrated a sustained commitment to the ALS/MND community
• Have made a non-scientific contribution of international significance
• Are not required to be affiliated with a scientific or medical institution
• May work in areas such as advocacy, caregiving, community engagement, education, or public awareness

Please note that current Board of Directors are not eligible for nomination.

Nomination deadline: 15 September 2025

Find out more and apply

Established in 2018, the Allied Health Professional Award honours an individual who has demonstrated exceptional dedication to improving care for people living with ALS/MND.

To be considered for the award, candidates must:

• Be an allied health professional working directly with people living with ALS/MND
• Demonstrate a commitment to delivering exceptional, person-centred care
• Contribute to the sharing of expertise and innovative practices within the ALS/MND community
• Play a significant role in improving clinical management and care outcomes for people affected by the disease

Please note that current Board of Directors are not eligible for nomination.

Nomination deadline: 15 September 2025

 Find out more and apply

Established in 2023, the Student Innovation Award aims to raise awareness of ALS/MND within the global student community. It offers students a platform to showcase creative ideas that improve the quality of life for people living with ALS/MND and helps spark innovation in the field.

To be considered for the award, candidates must:

• Be a full-time student or part of a student team
• Have initiated and implemented a project that has the potential for international impact
• Present an idea that is both innovative and grounded in the real needs of people living with ALS/MND
• Demonstrate that the solution is both practical and accessible

The winning individual or team will receive a £1,000 honorarium.

Nomination deadline: 15 September 2025

Find out more and apply

Researchers at the Sheffield Institute of Translational Neuroscience (SiTraN) are looking for a Post-doctoral research associate to work on metabolic dysfunction in C9 ALS. 

Previous research from the Allen Laboratory has shown that pyruvate metabolism is altered in C9orf72-patient derived iAstrocytes leading to reduced metabolic capacity. Furthermore, continuing work from the Allen and West Laboratories has uncovered an altered metabolic response to hypoxia in C9orf72 patient derived models and in Drosophila Melanogaster C9orf72 DPR models of ALS. However, the mechanisms involved are unclear.

The project, based in the labs of Dr Scott Allen and Dr Ryan West, will use cutting edge metabolic and hypoxic approaches to explore how the C9orf72 repeat expansion alters  pyruvate metabolism in normoxia and hypoxia using a combination of C9orf72 patient-derived iNPC models and Drosophila models.

The post, funded by the MND Association, offers a 3 year contract and an annual salary of £38,784.00.

Applications are welcome from those who have a PhD in neuroscience, neurobiology or a replated discipline and have experience working with iNPC/iPSC astrocyte models to study metabolism and/or hypoxia. 

Application deadline: 22 September

Find out more and apply

The Longitude Prize on ALS is a £7.5m prize, of which the MND Association is the principal funder, that aims to identify, prioritise and validate high-potential drug targets for ALS. The international programme seeks to incentivise the use of AI-based approaches to transform therapeutic discovery for the treatment of ALS, the most common form of MND.

The five-year Prize will see global multidisciplinary teams collaborate and compete in a three-phased programme. These phases are: 

1. Discover- this stage will see 20 teams use AI-based methods to analyse datasets over 9 months to identify novel therapeutic targets for ALS, or provide new evidence for known but unvalidated targets. The award for this stage is £100,000.
2. Prioritise- Ten of the teams from the first stage will then spend 12 months using computational and lab analysis to strengthen confidence in, and expand the evidence base for, the proposed therapeutic targets. Teams may continue to develop up to 10 targets submitted from Stage 1 and will further narrow this list based on emerging evidence. The award for this stage is £200,000.
3. Validate- Five of the teams from stage 2 will carry out comprehensive wet lab validation of the most promising therapeutic target(s) for 24 months. This stage is predominantly lab-based and aims to generate high-confidence data that can move targets closer to clinical application. The award for this stage is £500,000.

The Prize will award one winner who has demonstrated exceptional progress in validating therapeutic target(s) with the highest potential impact on ALS treatment. The winner will receive a £1 million award. 

Challenge Works are are looking for the brightest minds to bring AI to the fight against ALS.

The Prize will award applicants from across medical research, biotechnology, computational biology and AI with bold ideas on how to harness the power of AI to identify and validate high-potential therapeutic targets for the discovery of transformative ALS therapeutics.

They are looking for:

• AI experts

• Computational biologists and bioinformaticians

• Neurodegenerative disease researchers and ALS researchers

• Biotechnology, techbio and pharmaceutical companies

• Data scientists and engineers

• Clinical experts and medical researchers.

Deadline to register a team: 3 December 2025

Find out more and register as a team

World Congress of Neurology are committed to delivering a high-level scientific program, an international stage for your research, and plenty of networking opportunities. The XXVII World Congress of Neurology (WCN 2025) will take place on 12-15 October 2025 and will be held in Seoul, Korea.

Find out more and register

The 2025 Annual Stephen Hawking MND Lecture will focus on the topic of the genetics of MND and be delivered by Professor Ammar Al-Chalabi. 

The session will explore the role of genes in MND, including:

• the relevance of genetics for anyone living with MND, and their family members, including unaffected relatives
• how genetic testing may help predict or diagnose MND
• how genetic knowledge is shaping treatments
• how to discuss genetics in your practice and how to support people with and affected by MND with genetics-related decisions

The lecture is open to both health and social care professionals and people with MND.

It is a hybrid event, taking place on the 4 November at the Royal Society of Medicine in London and online.

Find out more and register

Hosted by St Christopher’s and King’s MND Care and Research Centre, this popular annual one day conference will focus on topics including  genetics, communication technology and ethical issues. Gain invaluable insights from those living with MND and their caregivers, and learn about the pivotal role of palliative care in managing this challenging condition.

The conference is aimed at healthcare professionals involved in the care of people with MND.

This meeting is taking place on the 7 November at St Christopher's CARE in London and online. 

Find out more and register
 

The key to defeating MND lies in fostering strong collaboration between leading researchers around the world, and sharing new understanding of the disease as rapidly as possible. This was the MND Association’s rationale behind the creation of the International Symposium on ALS/MND.

Each year, the Symposium attracts over 1,000 delegates, representing the energy and dynamism of the global MND research community. It is the largest medical and scientific conference specific to MND/ALS and is the premier event in the MND research calendar for discussion on the latest advances in research and clinical management. 

The 36th Symposium will be held in San Diego, USA in December.

Abstract submission closes: 10 July

Find out more