Elana Brief, 2010-2011 President

Elana Brief works as a Research Scholar with the National Core for Neuroethics at the University of British Columbia. She is interested in First Nation perspectives on aging, brain health, and cognitive decline. Elana holds a PhD in Physics from the University of British Columbia (UBC) where she developed methods for using MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) to non-invasively measure concentrations of chemicals in human brain. During her post-doctoral fellowships she used similar techniques to study human lung in Paris, France and fabricated skin at Simon Fraser University (SFU). She continues to publish her medical imaging work and collaborates with physicists, radiologists, dermatologists, endocrinologists and neurologists at SFU and UBC. Elana also works with the Women’s Health Research Network to inspire researchers to consider how sex and gender affect the health conditions they examine. Throughout her academic career, Elana has engaged in science outreach – bringing the excitement of scientific inquiry to the general public. Elana has served on the board of directors of the Society for Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) since 2004, acting as treasurer since 2005 and as president since 2008.