PONS integrates neuroimaging, cognitive neuroscience, (epi) genomics and epidemiological research with novel tools for environmental assessments, such as ecological momentary assessments using smart phone applications, social media analyses, and satellite-based remote sensing acquisitions. It aims at the identification of markers and brain mechanisms of risk and resilience for mental illness in different environmental contexts, such as pandemics, pollution, climate change, migration or urbanicity. This knowledge will be applied to develop neurobehavioural interventions targeted at causal brain mechanisms for prevention and early intervention of disease on a public health-relevant scale.

PONS coordinates a network consisting of cohorts of up to 195.000 people, including >25.000 neuroimaging scans in China, Europe, India and the United States, such as the European IMAGEN, STRATIFY and the Indian cVEDA cohort.

PONS works in close partnership with the Charite, one of Europe's largest university hospitals and research institutions, affiliated with Humboldt University and Free University Berlin, and collaborates with other leading research centres in Europe and the US, i.e. Cambridge University, USC, KCL and Emory Univers