Canadian Society for International Health Conferences

Canadian Society for International Health Conferences: "ealth in the Global Economy

Market-driven policies are dominating and guiding the global economy, reshaping our environment and impacting our health. Since the early 1980s, international health theories and practices have been strongly influenced by the neo-liberal agenda. The time has arrived, we believe, to pause and reflect on the lessons learned at the global, national and local levels over the past quarter of a century. Are we moving in the right direction? What results have we achieved in terms of reduced poverty increased equity of opportunity and improved health status? Is a course correction in order?

-Is development synonymous with economic growth? What impact would alternative definitions of development have on policies and practices, research agendas, advocacy, and intervention strategies?
-How do the ‘economic goggles’ influence initiatives such as the Millennium Development Goals, the ‘3 by 5’ Initiative, and debt cancellation campaigns?
-How are market-driven policies and practices impacting on national and local health systems?
-What is their impact on basic determinants of health, such as access to food, safe water, the environment and housing?
-What lessons can we learn from the grassroots and community levels?
-Do we need more research? What are the most urgent research questions? How do we bring attention to them?
-What are the fundamental choices, and emerging challenges and opportunities, we face moving along the new millennium?

Once again, the Canadian Conference on International Health invites you to critically explore some of the central, most controversial issues shaping the debate around health and development. The Conference will offer participants an opportunity to: explore contentious issues from a variety of perspectives; share knowledge and experiences; and learn about new opportunities to influence the global health agenda through research, advocacy, and action. Participants will increase their theoretical understanding of these issues while contributing their practical experiences to the debate.

We hope the Conference will make a significant contribution to the debate on these and related questions while creating a lively, thought-provoking forum for discussion and analysis that will attract practitioners, researchers, educators, policy makers, and community advocates working towards a healthier, more just world."