NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – The New York Genome Center announced today that it has received a pledge for up to $100 million in funding from two charitable organizations, which will be used to further the center's efforts to promote genomic discoveries to advance medical research.
The money will come in the form of contributions that match every dollar raised by the NYGC over the next three years. The Simons Foundation has agreed to provide up to $80 million and the Carson Family Charitable Trust promised to donate up to $20 million.
The Simons Foundation is chaired by James Simon, and the Carson trust is led by Russell Carson, who both help found the NYGC in 2011 and serve on the organization's board.
"By matching all philanthropic donations to the New York Genome Center over the next three years, we hope to inspire those who have already been generous and also attract new donors," Carson said in a statement. "I am confident that investing in genomics research is to the benefit of the community overall, and particularly to those suffering from some of our most challenging diseases."
"This kind of support will enable discoveries in a broad range of diseases, including cancer, neuropsychiatric and inflammatory diseases, that can help patients today," NYGC Director and CEO Robert Darnell added in the statement.
The NYGC said that it will use the donations for, among other things, fostering collaborations between scientists and clinicians in New York and elsewhere, acquiring new technologies to facilitate genomic research, and developing databases of genomic data for use by the research community.