Prince Edward Island will host a learning event on health promotion next month as part of a landmark international forum in Charlottetown on the subject.
The Department of Health and Wellness’ Chief Public Health Office will host “Your Work Matters in the Global Village” October 18, which will focus on health promotion in the province. It will follow the Global Forum on Health Promotion, held the previous two days in Charlottetown October 16 and 17.
“I encourage all Islanders who work or volunteer in the health promotion field to take this opportunity to come together and share perspectives of health promotion from a PEI lens,” said Health and Wellness Minister Robert Henderson. “The PEI forum will follow some of the themes presented during the Global Forum on Health Promotion, a prestigious international event which PEI is thrilled to host for the first time.”
Five previous Global Forums on Health Promotion have been held in Geneva since 2011, but this year is the first time the event has been held outside of Europe.
“2016 is the 30th anniversary of the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, so our goal is to engage representatives from across the Island to reflect on the last 30 years in PEI and identify where our focus should be in the future,” said Laura Lee Noonan, manager of Health Promotion in the Chief Public Health Office and chair of the steering committee for the Global Forum on Health Promotion. “We want to explore further actions to keep the momentum going following this important event.”
Keynote presenter will be Dr. Suzanne Jackson, editor-in-chief for Global Health Promotion.
“Health promotion can be somewhat invisible, but using a health promotion lens we can change policy and how we work with others from community to global levels,” said Dr. Jackson. “I look forward to discussing the ongoing relevance of health promotion 30 years after the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion.”
“Health promotion” generally means promoting healthy behaviours and providing Islanders with opportunities to improve their own health. The provincial Wellness Strategy is helping to do this through its focus on healthy-eating, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and tobacco use.
Backgrounder
Global Forum on Health Promotion
The 6th Global Forum on Health Promotion’s theme this year is Health Promotion ~ At the Very Heart of Sustainability, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Ottawa Charter and highlighting contributions of civil society and health promotion initiatives to sustainable development.
The Global Forum presents a unique opportunity to learn from and connect with international health promotion leaders. The event will bring together policymakers, government leaders, NGOs, researchers, educators, health promotion and public health professionals, community health leaders and experts across all sectors working to promote health, equity and sustainability.
The forum will take place Oct 16 and 17 and is being hosted and co-organized by the Government of Prince Edward Island in partnership with the Alliance for Health Promotion, The Quaich Inc. and Groupe Enterprises en santé.
Visit www.globalforumpei-forummondialipe.com to register.
Your Work Matters in the Global Village - PEI health promotion learning event
“Your Work Matters in the Global Village” is a learning event open to anyone working or volunteering in the health promotion field and is free of charge.
The learning event will focus on some of the themes presenting during the Global Forum. The aim of this learning event is to engage representatives from across PEI to share their perspectives on health promotion.
Keynote speaker Dr. Jackson is co-director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre in Health Promotion at the University of Toronto, associate professor emeritas in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, and chair-elect for the Canadian Public Health Association.
Visit www.hpconference.weebly.com to register before October 7.