Michael J. Fox Foundation is a 2-star charity. It has a below average results reporting score and it is not financially transparent. The charity's overhead costs are outside of Ci's reasonable range for overhead spending. Before you give, read Charity Intelligence's report.  

Founded in 2009, Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research Canada (MJFF Canada) funds research to improve treatments and find a cure for Parkinson’s disease (PD). PD occurs when brain cells that make dopamine, a chemical that coordinates movement, stop working or die. This can result in symptoms ranging from tremors to balance and mobility issues. Over 100,000 Canadians are living with PD and approximately 6,600 new cases are diagnosed each year. Due to an aging population, researchers project the number of people with Parkinson’s will double by 2040.   

Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research USA controls MJFF Canada’s operations and distributes research grants on its behalf. The charities share a common website and report on their granting activities and research outputs collectively. Ci could not determine any specific research areas that MJFF directs Canadian donations toward, based on its audited financials and public reporting.  

Michael J. Fox Foundation outlines six key research initiatives. The Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI) studies volunteers to measure changes in PD at its earliest stages. The charity states that there are 4,000 on-site participants and 100,000 online participants taking part in the study. The data accumulated from the PPMI study is equal to 47.5 billion typed pages. The Fox Insight project is a remote clinical study involving more than 30,000 people participating in online surveys. The Fox Trial Finder is an online tool that connects volunteers to studies in need of participants. MJFF’s Digital Health project funds researchers to monitor PD using wearable devices and smartphone applications. MJFF’s Specialist Training program offers training and fellowship opportunities for prospective researchers. Finally, the charity offers Edmond J. Safra Core Programs, which are funding opportunities for PD researchers. As of F2023, the Edmond J. Safra Fellowship had 32 graduates.  

The charity reports that in F2023 it funded 199 active trials. Of these, 74 are in Phase I of the clinical trial, 88 are in Phase II, and 37 are in Phase III.  

Michael J. Fox Foundation is not financially transparent. Its audited financial statements are not posted on its website nor provided when requested. Charity Intelligence's financial review uses the F2022 audited financial statements. This is the most recent information we have received from the Charities Directorate from our request for information. 

MJFF received donations of $1.8m in F2022. Administrative costs are 2% of revenues and fundraising costs are less than 1%. Prior to F2022 the charity did not report any fundraising costs. Total overhead spending is 2%. For every dollar donated to the charity, 98 cents are available for programs. This falls outside of Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.   

In F2022 MJFF spent $2.6m on its grants (up 371% from F2021), which is 141% of its revenues. The charity had a deficit of $789k. 

MJFF has $2.7m in reserve funds (cash and investments), which can cover one year and one month of annual program and grant costs.   

In its annual filing with the Charities Directorate, MJFF Canada does not report any full-time or part-time employees. It paid $20k in professional and consulting fees in F2022. 

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Michael J. Fox Foundation for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.   

Updated on July 17, 2024 by Alessandra Castino.