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The Fraser Mustard Institute for Human

Development

Progress Update

Issue 1: November 2013

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It is our great pleasure to share with you the first ever year in review newsletter from the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development (FMIHD).

Our goal at FMIHD is to improve the life-long health and well-being of children by focusing on understanding and enhancing their early development. In this newsletter, we invite you to read about the many steps we have taken in the past year towards realizing this vision. From innovative new education programs and cutting-edge research initiatives to high-profile international events and ventures into community outreach, we hope that this newsletter offers a glimpse into the amazing progress that we have already made at FMIHD, and keeps you up to date about our future aspirations. We have also included in this issue a tribute to the late Dr. James Fraser Mustard (1927-2011), an eminent Canadian scientist and fierce advocate for improving early human development. Dr. Mustard’s vision was the inspiration for FMIHD, and we are honoured to dedicate the Institute to his legacy.

Warm regards,

Stephen J. Lye (Executive Director) and Marla B. Sokolowski (Academic Director)

Welcome!

Connaught Global Challenge

The Connaught Global Challenge Award of approximately $1 million is awarded annually to an applicant who “brings together the university’s leading researchers

from multiple disciplines, as well as innovators and thought leaders from other sectors to heighten the university’s contribution to important issues facing society.”

The award was used to establish the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development, and has allowed the Institute to launch a series of research activities aimed at

understanding the relationship between children’s earliest experiences and their well-being throughout the course of life.

About FMIHDOur Goal

A growing body of evidence suggests that the first 2,000 days of life play a pivotal role in priming individuals for long-term health and wellness. It is crucial to dis-cover the optimal developmental trajectories for young children in order both to prevent serious disorders, and to foster the best possible continuing health, learning and social functioning. FMIHD aims both to discover the ways in which early childhood development molds

our long-term well-being, and to determine the most effective interventions to optimize the long-term effects of this sensitive period.

Our ResearchFMIHD pursues evidence-based studies across many fields. For example, researchers focus on the interplay between genes and environments (social, nutritional, cultural and economic) on a child’s development; theimpact of adversity during early life on brain develop-

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ment and a child learning and behavior and on interven-tions in families and individuals that promote healthy development and well-being. FMIHD works with children and families from advantaged and disad-vantaged communities, with key populations such as aboriginal children and youth as well as children in low-income countries, so that all children everywhere can reach their full potential.

Transdisciplinary ApproachThe scope of this task requires a breadth of exper-tise from diverse academic disciplines. FMIHD inte-grates these branches in a transdisciplinary approach that transcends traditional academic and professional boundaries. At FMIHD, leading researchers in educa-tion, biology, and psychology, among others, ensure that the complex issues surrounding human development are examined from all relevant perspectives.

Commitment to Change

In order to promote long-term health and wellness, FMIHD is motivated by a desire to effect real change in the ways our children are raised. We are committed to ensuring that the knowledge generated in our research programs is effectively disseminated to those who need it. To this end, FMIHD values active involvement with community partners, and seeks to engage directly with those who can use its research in real world settings, including policy-makers, educators, social workers and clinicians.

Commitment to Education

FMIHD recognizes the importance of inspiring new generations of researchers. Through its novel collab-orative education programs, FMIHD will prepare future researchers to further its mandate of studying and enhancing the developmental trajectories of children to prepare them for better health, learning, and social functioning throughout their lives.

Education and Training An important element of FMIHD’s vision is to create a robust education program in human development at both graduate and undergraduate levels, with the ultimate aim of inspiring a new generation of skilled and dedicated researchers. The Institute has made significant leaps in the past year in realizing this vision.

The Mats Sundin Fellowship in Developmental Health

The University of Toronto and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden have a long history of fruitful collaboration. This tradition was reinforced in 2012, when a gener-ous contribution by Maple Leafs legend Mats Sundin helped establish a new Fellowship in Developmental Health. Through this highly selective program, two postdoctoral fellows, from Toronto and Stockholm, re-spectively, will participate in an exchange program to study the relationship between early experience and disease. Dr. Stephen Matthews states that “these elite Sundin fellows will help advance our understanding of this complex relationship and assist our efforts to build trajectories towards health and away from disease.” The unique training provided through this exchange program will be instrumental to the success of this research.

Mats Sundin and Dean Catharine Whiteside of the Faculty ofMedicine display Sundin’s iconic number 13 in celebration of the launch of the prestigious fellowship.

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Graduate Education

FMIHD has established a working group to develop a Graduate Training Program in Human Develop-ment to advance the vision of the Institute – that experience in early life has consequences for life long health, learning and social functioning.

An important component of this Training Program will be a collaborative graduate program in Hu-man Development, which is currently being shaped by FMIHD’s academic steering committee. The program will incorporate many of the successful elements from existing undergraduate courses in human development, including a core course that emphasizes problem-based learning and collabora-tion across disciplinary boundaries. Graduate stu-dents will also be invited to attend seminars focusing on human development, and to participate in an

annual retreat where they can present their work, discuss ideas, and interact with other students and professors. The graduate program will embrace FMIHD’s commit-ment to transdisciplinarity and welcome students from a broad range of academic areas. We estimate that this collaborative

program will be operational by September 2014.

In the future, FMIHD hopes to retain a subset of exceptional students from this program and offer a more intensive “specialist” training program.

Undergraduate Education

In the past year, FMIHD has made great strides in both designing and implementing new undergradu-ate courses in human development at the University of Toronto. Courses are currently being taught to first-year and fourth-year students at both the Mississauga and St. George campuses of U of T, as well as at George Brown college for those training to be early childhood educators.

The courses are based on an innovative curriculum, crafted by Dr. Joel Levine, Dr. Fraser Mustard, and The Honourable Margaret McCain, that encourages problem-based learning and collaborative work among students rather than traditional lectures.

The Honourable Margaret McCain and Dr. Joel Levine and have been instrumental in constructing FMIHD’s new problem based learning curricula.

There have also been efforts to ensure diversity in the backgrounds of students: the current first-yearcourse, for instance, welcomes students from all disciplines, including arts, sciences and social sciences. In this way, the undergraduate learn-ing experience reflects FMIHD’s goal of facilitating interaction among different disciplines and moving beyond conventional academic silos.

FMIHD is thrilled to report that early feed-back from both students and professors has been outstanding. The teamwork and collaboration among students has been described as “magical.” FMIHD is excited to continue to develop and improve upon this undergraduate education initiative in the coming years.

FMIHD is also currently working with Aga Khan University (AKU) campuses in Pakistan and Kenya in an effort to create an interactive online course in human development. The project, spearheaded by Dr. Levine, will bring together fourth-year students from the U of T and students from the AKU through a shared online community to wrestle with issues sur-rounding human development. FMIHD is enthusiastic about the possibilities for this groundbreaking program.

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Research

FMIHD aims to engage in original research focusing on the interplay between genes and environments (social, nutritional, cultural and economic) in order to illuminate the developmental pathways that affect long-term health and well being. We have taken steps to coordinate the full-scale launch of this ambitious research project.

The Ontario Birth Study and TARGet Kids!

The Ontario Birth Study (OBS) is an ambitious and exciting new research initiative established in 2011 and led by Dr. Alan Bocking. The goal of the study is to help researchers and clinicians better understand pregnancy, the health of mothers and babies, and ultimately, the importance of early life experiences on childhood and later life health and well-being (i.e. socializing, learning and interacting). The program is open to all pregnant women admitted to prenatal care at Mt. Sinai hospital over the age of 18, and researchers hope to enroll over 1000 women this year.

The study will focus on both genetic and environ-mental factors that contribute to the health and well-being of children and mothers. This dual focus will help shed light on how our experiences “get under our skin” to influence the effects of our genes. For example, researchers will investigate the role that nutri-tion, an environmental factor, plays in either promot-ing or inhibiting certain genetic predispositions. This knowledge will eventually help us figure out the best possible conditions for early human development, as well as the most effective interventions to mitigate the effects of poor early environments.

The OBS will be used as a resource in various collab-orations, many of which will be made possible by the support and transdisciplinary talents of the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development. First, there are plans to connect the data to TARGet Kids! (The Applied Research Group for Kids), a research study involving children in Toronto that seeks to link early childhood environments to lasting health problems, such as obesity, micronutrient deficiencies and developmen-tal problems. Dr. Jonathon Maguire, a pediatrician at St. Michael’s hospital and an Assistant Professor in

both the Department of Pediatrics and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, is a lead researcher on the project. As an active member of FMIHD, Dr. Maguire will facilitate smooth inter-actions among OBS, TARGetKids and FMIHD.

OBS resources are also being used in a collaborative effort with the Institute for Systems Biology in Seat-tle to study issues surrounding preterm birth. This project is made possible due to a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation through the Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth (GAPPS).

Finally, Dr. Alan Bocking has introduced a proposal to link the OBS to AMPATH programs in Kenya in order to support preterm birth research internationally.

The Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development is a crucial partner in all of these collaborations, as it will ensure the transdisciplinary sharing of informa-tion and resources across the university and affiliated hospitals.

Drs. Stephen Lye and Alan Bocking are two of the many devoted researchers investigating the importance of early life experience through the Ontario Birth Study.

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Events

FMIHD has coordinated a series of high profile events in the past year. These events, which included the Institute’s formal launch, a world-class international symposium, and a distinguished lecture series, have helped FMIHD to inspire collaborations among researchers and to broadcast accessible information to the community.

Launch of FMIHD

On September 27, 2012, the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development was formally launched at the MaRS Discovery Centre in front of approximately 200 attendees. Dr. Cameron Mustard, Fraser’s son and a pro-fessor at the Dalla Lana school of Public Health, spoke passionately about FMIHD’s connection to his father’s aspirations:

“The University of Toronto’s commitment to establish a transdisciplinary Institute for Human Development resolved, for my father, one of the uncompleted tasks on his to-do list. He had a vision that U of T could provide international leadership in scholarship in this field.”- Dr. Cameron Mustard Dr. Cameron Mustard during the Opening event of the

Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development

From September 27-29 2012, FMIHD welcomed over 200 registrants from across Canada and the US to a symposium entitled “Investing in Mothers and Children: Developmental Trajectories, Health, Learning and Society.” The symposium featured a world-class group of speakers with a diverse range of research interests, including basic, biomedical and social scientists.

Participants extensively discussed the current state of research in early human development, and considered how the field can move towards more collabora-tive, synergistic research models. The symposium provided a preview of the kind of research that FMIHD hopes to champion in the coming years.

Connaught Global Challenge International Symposium

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FMIHD Lecture Series

Funds from the Connaught Global Challenge Award were used to launch a lecture series for the Institute. The lectures, which were accessible to both academic and non-academic audiences, examined current issues surrounding early human development. Lectures were hosted by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education and the Faculty of Medicine. Some of the renowned speakers invited by FMIHD are shown below, along with the title of the talk they delivered:

Dr. Clyde Hertzman: How Society Gets Under the Skin in Early Life: Is this the Beginning of a New Science?

Dr. David Barker: Preventing Chronic Disease by Improving Human Development

Dr. Robert Pianta: Elevating the Capacity of Classroom Experiences for Promoting Students' Learning and Development: Observation and Improvement of Teacher-Student Interactions

Dr. Ralph Greenspan: From Sleep to Attention, Flies are More Like Us Than You’d Think

Dr. Annette Karmiloff-Smith: Genetic and Envi-ronmental Vulnerabilities: The Importance of Cross-Syndrome Comparisons

Dr. Leeroy Hood: Systems Medicine and Emerging Technologies: Catalyzing Proactive P4 Medicine

Dr. W. Thomas Boyce: What the Genes Remember: How Stratification, Sensitivity and Stress Codetermine Child Health and Development

Dr. Edward Melhuish: Let evidence lead the way: Findings from the UK’s Effective Provision of Pre-School Education Study

Dr. John Newnham: Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) and the challenges ahead

FMIHD will be continuing its lecture series during the coming year and welcomes any input regarding potential speakers and events.

OISE, University of Toronto252 Bloor Street West, 7th floorToronto, Ontario, Canada, M5S 1V6Website: www.humandevelopment.utoronto.caEmail: humandevelopment@utoronto.ca

Executive Director: Dr. Stephen J. LyeTel: 416 978 8325

Academic Director: Dr. Marla B. SokolowskiTel: 416 978 8325

Administrative Coordinator: Victoria De LucaTel: 416 978 8325

Advancement Contact: Selina EstevesTel: 416 978 0391Email: selina.esteves@utoronto.ca

Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development Contact Information:

To download the FMIHD brochure, please visit: www.humandevelopment.utoronto.ca

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Community Outreach

Dr. Fraser Mustard often emphasized the need to close the gap between what we know and what we do. The goal of FMIHD is not simply to do research, but also to ensure that children can actually benefit from it. Com-munity outreach is a central task for the Institute in pursuit of this goal, and we are proud to say that we have made important links to many groups in the past year.

Ontario Government

FMIHD has established contacts within the On-tario government, and has held meetings with Deputy Ministers and Assistant Deputy Ministers from the Ministry of Health and Long

Term Care and the Ministry of Education. We hope that these connections will provide a more direct link between research and policy, and help close the gap between knowledge and action.

Public Health

FMIHD has met with representatives from Peel Public Health, and is currently planning a second meeting to review the Ontario Birth Study and discuss the shar-ing of resources. FMIHD has participated in meetings with leaders from Public Health Ontario to discuss the importance of a human development agenda in the Public Health system.

Healthy Kids Panel

The Healthy Kids Panel comprised a group of experts assembled by the

provincial government tasked with making recom-mendations to reduce childhood obesity. FMIHD con-tributed to the panel, which recently published report entitled No Time to Wait: The Healthy Kids Strategy (March 2013). We hope that this interaction will set the stage for future links to the community through provincial government.

Aga Khan Foundation Canada (AKFC)

AKFC supports sustainable improvements in the quali-ty of life of poor, marginal-ized communities in Asia and Africa, and aims to enhance Canada’s leadership in world affairs. FMIHD hopes that involvement with AKFC will provide opportunities

to make more connections to the community and develop additional partnerships.

World Health Organization (WHO)

The Fraser Mustard Institute is currently contributing to a new initiative hosted by the WHO to prepare a plan for a new program focusing on the im-portance of early-life to life-long health, learning and social functioning. FMIHD

joins UNESCO, UNICEF, the World Bank, US-AID, and others as a collaborator in this program. The ultimate goal is to develop programs that can impact children in low and middle income countries. FMIHD is also working with the WHO to have the Institute established as an official WHO Collaborating Centre.

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Remembering Fraser Mustard

We would like to take a moment to remember the life and legacy of Dr. James Fraser Mustard (1927-2011). Dr. Mustard was born on Octo-ber 16, 1927 to Allan Alexander and Jean Ann Mustard. He attended University of Toronto Schools as a child, developing a knack for prob-lem solving that would later help to define his career, and was awarded his M.D. from the University of Toronto in 1953. During his time in university, Dr. Mustard emerged as a star football player, earning the nickname “Moose” Mustard from his peers. His long-time colleague and friend Marian Packham fondly describes the lasting influ-ence of football on Dr. Mustard’s career, noting his constant efforts to bring his associates “onside,” and his exasperation at individuals who “dropped the ball.”

Following medical school, Dr. Mustard travelled to Cambridge, and received his Ph.D. in 1956 for his work on arterial disease. His subsequent research in the area was illuminating, with per-haps his most noteworthy contribution to the field

being the discovery that aspirin can help to prevent heart disease and strokes. In 1966, Dr. Mustard assumed the role of Chair of Pathol-ogy as one of the founding faculty of McMaster’s Medical School; later became Dean and Vice-Pres-ident of teh Faculty of Health Sciences. In 1982, Dr. Mustard founded the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (originally CIAR, now CIFAR), envisioning an environment where leading research-ers from around the world could collaborate to tack-le difficult questions. Many colleagues credit the ultimate success of the Institute to Dr. Mustard’s endless perseverance and commitment to his vision.

Dr. Mustard stepped down as president of CIFAR in 1992, and the remainder of his life was devoted whole-heartedly to improving early human devel-opment in Canada. In 1999, Dr. Mustard, together with the Honourable Margaret McCain, published a report entitled The Early Years Study - Reversing the Real Brain Drain. The report was instrumen-tal in propelling the subject of early child develop-ment into the national and international spotlight. Dr. Mustard’s continuing efforts to support early human development were tireless: he co-authored two more Early Years Studies, the last of which in collaboration with Kerry Mccuaig of OISE’s Atkinson Centre.

Dr. Mustard passed away in November, 2011, following a short battle with cancer. One of his final projects was the conception and creation of the Institute for Human Development at the Uni-versity of Toronto. We continue to be inspired by Dr. Mustard’s compassion, innovation, and deter-mination in his campaign to help children across Canada, and we are honoured to dedicate the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development to his legacy and memory.

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