U of T launches Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development to examine early childhood health and development
TORONTO, ON – The University of Toronto has launched the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development, the first institute of its kind in Canada.
The institute brings together researchers from across disciplines – including education, medicine, psychology, biology and social work – to connect in new ways and make the most of the early years with the vision of maximizing potential and providing every child with the best possible start in life. Professor Stephen Lye, of the Faculty of Medicine’s Departments of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Physiology, will lead the Institute as executive director, alongside academic director Marla Sokolowski, from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.
The new institute is named in memory of early human development advocate Dr. J. Fraser Mustard, and encompasses faculties and divisions across U of T, as well as its affiliated hospitals.
U of T President David Naylor said, “We are proud to honour this great Canadian, and to recognize this giant of biosciences and trans-disciplinary research, in the launch of the Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development.”
At the launch, held on Thursday at the MaRS Discovery Centre, Lye said, “New science has revealed that the first 2,000 days of life are critical to a child’s life-long health, learning and social functioning. By creating a critical mass of brilliant researchers from different disciplines and professions, U of T is at the very forefront of research to maximize the health and full potential of our greatest resource - our children.”
The Fraser Mustard Institute has supporters from around the world, including Mats Sundin, former captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs ice hockey team and the son of a pediatric nurse. Sundin has established exchange fellowships for two elite scientists in developmental biology between U of T and Karolinska Institutet in his home country of Sweden. “Now that I’m a new father, I see how important it is to give babies the best possible start in life. I hope the important research that will take place at the U of T’s IHD will help the world’s children develop into healthy adults.”
According to Sokolowski, “The conversation between our genes and our environment in early life has lifelong consequences for our health, learning and social functioning. Understanding how our early experience affects us is one of the research questions being asked by our highly trans-disciplinary network of researchers.”
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