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Reflections on the 2024 Annual Applied Public Health Chair Meeting
On September 19-20, the Applied Public Health Chair (APHC) community came together for two days of dialogue and collaboration centered on the theme, "Advancing Equity in Applied Public Health Research and Practice: Sharing Our Knowledge."
Hosted at 312 Main, where SFU’s Community Engaged Research Initiative (CERi) is based in Vancouver, BC. by Meghan Winters (Simon Fraser University) and Mark Gilbert (University of British Columbia), this year’s meeting was intentionally designed to create an inclusive and open space for learning, collaboration, and reflection.
This was the first time for many of the 2022 and 2024 Applied Public Health Chairs to meet in-person. The Chairs were joined by trainees, early career researchers, and decision-makers affiliated with their programs, as well as funders (e.g., CIHR Institute of Population and Public Health, Institute of Gender and Health, Public Health Agency of Canada), and partners and guests working in applied public health.
Winters and Gilbert curated this meeting with a clear intention: to create a dedicated space for discussing equity in public health. Winters explained,
“While the Applied Public Health Chairs work on a wide array of topics and settings, all of our programs aim to improve population health and health equity. However, many of us rarely have dedicated space to go in depth on how we do equity in our daily work, especially across each of these different aspects of leading research. Mark and I decided that dedicating the meeting to this topic was a chance for reflection and an opportunity to consider new ways of working.”
Each day was opened by Elder Glida Morgan of the Tla’amin Nation. Through her work on Vancouver's Downtown East Side, focusing on family violence, mental wellness, and women's health, Elder Gilda Morgan is dedicated to bringing healing to Indigenous communities. Her reflections set a powerful tone for the discussions that followed.
The meeting featured a mix of keynote speakers, panel discussions, and small group dialogues that stimulated thoughtful in-depth exploration of equity-related issues in public health research and practice across three key areas:
- How we work, or (how researchers lead, organize and work within their research teams in ways that advance equity,( e.g., EDI in training and teams, mentorship), featured presentations from Jeannie Shoveller, Dalhousie University, and Kate Storey, University of Alberta, facilitated by Meghan Winters
- How we design and do research, or ways that equity can be advanced through our research practice and processes (e.g., supporting community participation in research), featured a video conversation with Charlene Burmeister, BC Centre for Disease Control and a circle reflection exercisetalking circle led by Elder Barb Whyte of the K’ómoks First Nation, facilitated by Mark Gilbert
- What topics we choose to study and how we report them, or ways to advance the impact of the evidence we generate on improving health equity for communities and populations, featured presentations from Maxwell Smith, University of Western Ontario and Sarah Viehbeck, Public Health Agency of Canada facilitated by Devon Greyson, University of British Columbia
You can download the 2024 APHC Meeting Workbook for the full meeting agenda, highlights and key discussions.
Aftab Erfan delivered an engaging keynote that shed light on the work on citizen assemblies and deliberative democracy at the SFU Morris J. Wosk Centre of Dialogue. She posed a thought-provoking question to the participants: "Could public health benefit from more deliberative democracy?” Using facilitation techniques from Deep Democracy, Erfan encouraged participants to share their perspectives, sparking discussions that resonated throughout the meeting.
The two-day meeting was infused with energy and creativity thanks to facilitator Khari Wendell McClelland's unique approach. Khari seamlessly wove singing, movement, play and reflective activities that transformed a traditional academic meeting into an embodied experience.
The unique structure of the meeting was well-received, with participants noting its departure from traditional academic gatherings. As Gilbert noted, “Participants shared that the structure served to quickly create connections and an environment where people felt readily able to connect and share challenges they face across aspects of their applied public health programs.”
Reflecting on the event, Winters shared, “These two days felt expansive and inspiring. It was a delight to share space with teams tackling such a diverse array of public health challenges across the country. I'm left with an abundance of learning and inspiration I can take forward about how others are doing their work in community, and how to clearly forefront equity at decision-making tables.”
We're incredibly grateful to everyone who contributed their voices, experiences and ideas. Your passion and commitment to advancing equity in public health are truly inspiring. As we return to our respective research programs, let's carry forward the spirit of collaboration and innovation that defined our time together.
The Applied Public Health Chairs (APHC) program is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Institute of Population and Public Health (CIHR-IPPH) and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).
