MetLife Foundation | Acting Globally and Locally

Health and Medical Research

Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Clinical Investigator Award - Worldwide, one in seven deaths is due to cancer. Cancer kills more people than AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. It is the second leading cause of death in the high-income countries (following cardiovascular disease) and the third leading cause of death in low- and middle-income countries (behind cardiovascular disease and infectious and parasitic diseases). Given the scale and seriousness of cancer, and our commitment to healthy communities, MetLife Foundation chose to expand our partnership with Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation through sponsorship of the Clinical Investigator Award. Over the next three years, MetLife Foundation funding will provide support to early career physician-scientists whose research will directly impact patients by bridging the gap between laboratory and clinical work. The goal is to identify and fund the future leaders in biomedical research by giving them the resources to continue their training. An important additional goal is to provide exceptional young scientists and doctors with opportunities to interact with industry leaders in cancer research to facilitate collaboration that will lead to new therapies. 

Awards for Medical Research in Alzheimer’s Disease - Alzheimer’s medical research and public awareness campaigns have been a signature project for MetLife Foundation for more than 25 years. MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research recognize excellence in medical advances and provide outstanding researchers with resources to pursue promising ideas. At the heart of the program is a belief in research as the road to understanding and ultimately curing Alzheimer’s and other devastating forms of dementia. The 2015 award winners were Randall Bateman MD and Christian Haass, PhD. A research scientist and practicing physician based in St. Louis, Dr. Bateman is known for developing a technique known as stable isotope-linked kinetics, or SILK, that made it possible for the first time to measure central nervous system proteins in living people. Dr. Bateman’s lab is now developing a SILK method for studying the abnormal protein that destroys the structure of brain cells in Alzheimer’s patients. He is also director and principal investigator of the first Alzheimer’s prevention trials testing drugs for people who show no symptoms but are at high genetic risk for the disease. Dr. Haas, a professor of biochemistry in Munich, was the first to demonstrate that one of the enzymes implicated in Alzheimer’s is critical to the proper regulation of the electrical insulation of brain cells. His work warned that inhibiting beta-secretase’s work could disrupt the development of healthy neurons, and his work has been critical to ensuring that treatments currently in development or trials are both effective and safe.

Disaster Relief

Nepal Earthquake Response - In April 2015, Nepal was devastated by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake, the worst the country had experienced in more than 80 years. More than 8,000 were killed and more than 21,000 injured, with immense damage to property and loss of homes. To help aid the victims, MetLife Foundation donated $250,000 to the International Medical Corps Nepal Earthquake Relief Fund and matched the personal contributions of 700 associates from 26 countries to the Fund. 

Arts & Culture

Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture - The newest museum on the National Mall in Washington D.C., the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture will be the only national museum devoted to telling the story of the United States through the lens of African American life, art, history, and culture. Scheduled to open in Fall 2016, the architecturally stunning, environmentally state-of-the-art Museum sits on a five-acre site adjacent to the Washington Monument. It will display more than 30,000 treasures from African American history, including Louis Armstrong’s trumpet, a Jim Crow-era railroad car, one of the planes flown by the Tuskegee Airmen, and extensive collections of African American fashion, fine arts, and Civil War-era photographs. The Museum features 380,000 square feet of space with nine galleries on five levels, providing space for educational and public programs, performances, presentations, and forums. In order to reach young people, the Museum also offers dedicated education spaces for K-12 students, with interactive learning and digital access programming focused on STEAM (science, technology, art, and mathematics) subject matter. The Museum will be free to the public and is projected to draw three to five million visitors annually. MetLife Foundation is proud to continue its long tradition of advancing cultural and artistic diversity by supporting the Museum as a Founding Donor with a $1 million grant.

Children’s Museum of Jordan - MetLife Foundation supports the Children’s Museum of Jordan’s Celebrations program, an initiative to build greater cultural understanding among the nation’s youth. A year-round program, Celebrations commemorates important national occasions such as Mother’s Day, Labor Day, and Independence Day. In honor of these and other special occasions throughout the year, the Museum features musicians, dramatic performances, and interactive activities for the children, all built around the themes of those holidays. The Children’s Museum of Jordan has become a central location for empowering children through exciting, innovative, authentic learning experiences rooted in Jordanian culture. It is committed to enabling young Jordanians to become thinkers, future leaders, and innovators as well as active citizens in their communities. The Celebrations program is one important way the Children’s Museum of Jordan advances its mission of bringing children and their families closer to their community, as they explore together their nation’s heritage, values, traditions, and culture. 

Read more about The MetLife Foundation commitment to community in their 2015 Annual Report