QBI Steps for Dementia Research is a program of peer to peer fundraising activities where people in the community can raise funds to support research at the Queensland Brain Institute.

There is currently no treatment or cure for dementia, which is the second leading cause of death in Australia and the most prevalent cause of death for Australian women. Dementia affects almost one in 10 people over the age of 65 and research at QBI is providing a pathway to potential treatments to millions worldwide.

A group of trekkers, are walking the Blue Mountains to raise funds to support the fight against dementia.

In 2017, Janice Rushworth established the Alastair Rushworth PhD Scholarship Fund in 2017 in memory of her husband, Alastair Rushworth, who sadly passed away from early-onset Alzheimer's Disease in 2016.

Funds raised through the trek will support a PhD student conducting critical dementia research at the Queensland Brain Institute.

In 2024, the goal is to raise $100,000 to fund the Alastair Rushworth Scholar, Montana Samantzis, who is working to discover treatments to help solve this devastating disease and to grow the endowment to support future PhD students.