The art of communicating - El arte de comunicar

April 2012

Health Promotion Connection Conexiones para la Promoción de la Salud Connexion pour la Promotion de la Santé

The monthly publication of ISECN, the IUHPE Student and Early Career Network/La publicación mensual de la ISECN, la Red de Estudiantes y Jóvenes Profesionales de la UIPES / La publication mensuelle de ISECN, le Réseau des étudiants et jeunes professionnels de l'UIPES

Inside this issue: Notes from the IUHPE Board of Trustees Meeting, April 2012, Mexico City, Mexico, by Hope Corbin

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¡Sí, se puede hablar de salud sin usar palabras! Yes, it is possible to speak about health without words! ( Español & English) Por Mariana Sanmartino, Traducido por Helga Urke/By Mariana Sanmartino, Translated by Helga Urke

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Constitución de la Red Latinoamericana de estudiantes y jóvenes profesionales, de la Unión Internacional de Promoción de la Salud (UIPES), (Español & English) Por Sharon Ortiz, Traducido por Sharon Ortiz/Written and translated by Sharon Ortiz

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Celebrating our successes, by Marilyn Rice

Health Promotion Meetings & Conferences (English & Español) By Marie Grimm and Annette Servan New Publications

Letter from the Editor

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Letter from the Editor

Por Emily Fisher, Traducido por Mariana Sanmartino*

Emily Fisher*

La 5a Conferencia Latinoamericana y la 4a Conferencia Interamericana de Promoción de la Salud y Educación para la Salud celebrada en la ciudad de México (2012), fue una experiencia emocionante para los miembros de la ISECN. Tuvimos la oportunidad de desempeñarnos como voluntarios trabajando junto a los coordinadores de la conferencia, y además organizamos y coordinamos tres sesiones. Esta edición de Conexiones para la Promoción de la Salud busca destacar partes de la conferencia para quienes se la perdieron, así como inspirar(nos) con ideas de cómo ISECN puede estar participando en las futuras conferencias.

The recent IUHPE 5th Latin-American and 4th Inter-American Health Promotion and Health Education Conference in Mexico City was an exciting experience for ISECN. We had the opportunity to volunteer as reporters to the conference coordinators and we coordinated and led three sessions. This edition of Health Promotion Connection highlights conference activities and attempts to inspire us all with ideas for how ISECN can be engaged at future conferences.

El taller pre-conferencia de la ISECN, "Perfecciona tu discurso del elevador" tuvo tanto éxito que se repetirá en la Conferencia Mundial de Promoción de la Salud de la UIPES en el año 2013.

Los participantes se agruparon en mesas de 8 a 10 personas junto con un profesional del campo de la promoción de la salud para desarrollar y practicar cada uno su breve presentación (discurso de elevador), a través de una serie de ejercicios. Esta actividad proporcionó una oportunidad para establecer contactos antes del comienzo de la conferencia y permitió la reflexión individual sobre las expectativas acerca de la experiencia de la conferencia.

ISECN también desarrolló una sesión innovadora sobre "¿Cómo hablar de salud sin usar palabras?" que se centró en el intercambio de diferentes formas de "discutir" la promoción de la salud fuera de las barreras lingüísticas y culturales. Durante la sesión se mostraron resultados de investigaciones y obras de arte surgidas de experiencias de promoción de la salud de diversas partes del mundo y culminó con la creación de un mural (¡ver el artículo en la página 4 para la historia completa!)

Finalmente, uno de los resultados más interesantes surgió de una sesión destinada a convocar la participación de miembros de América Latina dentro de la ISECN. El objetivo era aumentar la

ISECN’s pre-conference workshop on “Perfecting Your Elevator Speech” was so successful that we plan to replicate it at the 21st IUHPE World Conference on Health Promotion in 2013. In this session, attendees were paired in tables of 8-10 with one Spanishor English-speaking health promotion professional to develop and practice their short introduction (elevator speech) through a series of exercises. This activity provided a chance to network before the conference began and allowed individual reflection on what each person wanted out of his/her conference experience.

ISECN also led an innovative session on “How to Speak About Health Without Words” which focused on sharing different ways to “discuss” health promotion outside language and cultural barriers. The session showcased research and artwork from health promoters dealing with various health struggles around the globe and finished with a creation of a mural (see the article on page 6 for the full story!)

Finally, one of the most exciting developments emerged from a session focused on building Latin American membership within ISECN. This session aimed to increase regional engagement by asking attendees what they wanted out of this network and what they were willing to contribute. Session feedback points to new opportunities for future cross-cultural collaborations (see page 9 for session leader, Sharon Ortiz’s, report of the session).

Overall, ISECN activities brought new connections and renewed engagement. We are already planning our involvement in the

Page 2 participación regional preguntando a los asistentes qué quería obtener de esta red y en qué estaban dispuestos a contribuir.

Las evaluaciones de esta sesión apuntaron a la generación de nuevas oportunidades para futuras colaboraciones interculturales (ver en la página 8 el informe de la sesión escrito por Sharon Ortiz, coordinadora del espacio).

2013 IUHPE World Conference: please email Emily (emilya.fisher@gmail.com) if you are interested in joining the ISECN planning committee.

En general, las actividades de la ISECN generaron nuevas conexiones y llevaron a renovar el compromiso de los/as participantes. Ya estamos planeando la manera de involucrarnos en la próxima conferencia de la UIPES, así como en la Conferencia Mundial de la UIPES en 2013: quienes tengan interés en formar parte de estos espacios, por favor comunicarse por correo electrónico con Emily Fisher *Acknowledgements: Hope Corbin, Emily Fisher, Hilary McGregor, Sharon Oritz Martínez, Paola Parrilla García, Mariana Sanmartino, Helga Urke, Morgan Stavoestrand, and Alejandro Valencia-Tobón Partnered with: Vena2 , Emily Gómez, Lian Solana, María , Ricardo Beard and Rafael Martínez (Cultura Colectiva)

Celebrating our successes

By Marilyn Rice, IUHPE Regional Vice President, Column reprinted from the NARO News I want to devote my column in this issue to the very successful IUHPE ORLA/NARO Inter-American Regional conference held in Mexico City from April 10th -13th. Its success is a demonstration of the kind of very positive results that can be achieved through collaborative efforts. Thanks to the tremendous financial, technical and human resources support from the Mexican Secretariat of Health, and from IUHPE NARO and ORLA volunteers, we were able to bring multicountry presenters from North and South America, Europe, the Caribbean and Australia. They brought the best science to the sessions, including evidence of effectiveness and costeffective strategies & approaches. Convincing arguments were proposed for equitable access to life-saving & healthpromoting products, systems & lifestyles that might overcome political biases and intellectual property rights of large corporations as well as showing the advantages of sacrificing short-term political & economic gains for long-term benefits that would lead to healthier more self-reliant populations.

Presentations showed the advantage of moving beyond geopolitical boundaries to promote global thinking that was being translated into local action, and was context-appropriate and measurable, in a way that produces accountability. We were privy to experiences that demonstrated the effectiveness of tried & proven-health promotion strategies & approaches; showed how creating healthy settings took global thinking & applied it to local situations; given effective examples of promoting local, regional and national participation in

situational assessment, development and implementation of solutions, & active participation in decision-making & community empowerment; and provided with evidence of demonstrated effectiveness of policies that cut across sectors & interests to create the best possible healthy scenarios and options.

The individual & institutional resources in the IUHPE ORLA & NARO have shown the power of thinking globally and acting locally and all through volunteers and good will.

Although we had tremendous support from Mexico’s national government, its leaders trusted the technical decision-making process to a regionally representative group from the Americas, giving us free reign to develop the technical program as we thought best. We were also able to see the power of networks and the value of decentralization of responsibilities. There was a very productive meeting of the Ibero-American Consortium of Universities & Centers for Training Persons in Health Education & Health Promotion and the global IUHPE Student and Young Professionals Network, a Spanish-speaking subsection of which was formed during the conference.

There was an incredible turn out for 8 pre- and postconference courses on cutting edge topics (empowerment, rights & health, Health Impact Assessment, many on the social determinants of health, and on risk communication) to the point where they were sold out and people had to be turned

April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 3 away. A number of sessions were held to link the WHO Global Health Promotion Conference (Helsinki, Finland, June 2013) with the next IUHPE World Health Promotion and Health Education Conference (Pattaya, Thailand, August 2013). Not only were there state-of the art presentations, but state-of-the -art follow-up will be provided through Web materials and an on-line opportunity for CHES credits through NARO. The conference attracted almost 1,500 people from 23 countries. Some of the highlights include: 420 people were mobilized from throughout Mexico, coming from all the states; there were very creative imaginary forums with 50 performances that were 2 years in the planning; sessions were organized to allow for maximum audience participation; certificates were awarded to people for presenting, moderating and attending; networks were reinforced through special sessions; there were more than 50 universities, and special sessions for students and young professionals with country focal points in attendance.

There was a time when we had a long tradition of holding Inter-American conferences every three years, the year before the IUHPE World Conference. It provided us with the opportunity to discuss themes from an Americas perspective that would later be addressed in the World conference and to bring presentations representing our context to that broader gathering.

Shortly after ORLA was formed in 1988, the last Inter-American conference was held. It was wonderful to see this tradition resuscitated and we hope that in three years’ time, just before the next World conference, we will have the opportunity to have one again. I would like to personally thank all of those who helped to make this such a successful and enriching experience.

A really good conference is a balance between science, networking, and a good atmosphere and social program. This conference excelled in all these areas. The scientific program was rounded off by the conference being held in a wonderful setting with views across the city, and with healthy breaks supplemented by organized physical activity and constant fruit and vegetables. The quirky modern Camino Real Hotel that had split levels and was spread out ensured we got lots of exercise moving from place to place and back and forth to our rooms.

The social program was such fun as we began with a reception with a Mariachi band and with the usual health promotion energy we started dancing. There was a wonderful diner in an old monastery with tiers of terraces above the floor. People came from all over Mexico in their traditional cultural dress that was displayed it to all of the diners.

The most memorable thing was the wonderful people and their natural welcoming personalities. The lasting impression was sunshine, smiles and good food to help the scientific sessions which were of the highest caliber. We waited 22 years for a joint NARO/ORLA conference and we should certainly not wait as long for the next one.

Notes from the IUHPE Board of Trustees Meeting, April 2012, Mexico City, Mexico

By Hope Corbin This year’s Board of Trustee’s (BoT) meeting was eventful! There were a lot of good discussions: perhaps one of the most important discussions for us to be aware of is about a proposed restructuring of IUHPE’s governance body, the Board of Trustees.

The IUHPE’s Board currently consists of about 70 people. A Board of this size can make decision making cumbersome. This has been an increasing burden in the current fiscal climate where an organization’s ability to react quickly to opportunities is important. Thus, IUHPE President, Michael Sparks, circulated a proposal for changing the governance structure of the BoT. Marti Rice, Vice President of the IUHPE North America Region (NARO), led many discussions throughout the recent IUHPE regional conference and prior to the BOT meeting about the proposed changes with members from NARO and the Latin American Region (ORLA) and was able to craft a counter-proposal.

This background work led to a very productive conversation amongst the Board members at the official meeting and we were all able to agree on a proposed change to the governance structure. This action would reduce the overall size of the BoT but preserves regional representation and ensures that all Board members will have defined roles. To be clear, we did not change the governance structure—we came up with a proposal which we will now present to the general membership (i.e., YOU) to decide if IUHPE should make the change.

In the coming weeks, you will see more about this proposed change and you will need to vote to approve or reject the suggestion. And most importantly, we will need to work together as a voting block to make sure that we are able to vote an ISECN representative onto the BoT in 2013, so that we can ensure that our membership is well-represented within the IUHPE. It is clear that with fewer available positions, it will be more competitive to become a Board member. Look for more in upcoming communications.

April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 4 ¡Sí, se puede hablar de salud sin usar palabras!

Yes, it is possible to speak about health without words!

Por Mariana Sanmartino En el marco de la 5a Conferencia Latinoamericana y la 4a Conferencia Interamericana de Promoción de la Salud y Educación para la Salud, el día miércoles 11 de abril por la tarde se desarrolló la sesión ¿Cómo hablar de salud sin usar palabras?, organizada y coordinada por miembros de la ISECN*.

A partir de una idea nacida de las inquietudes generadas dentro del grupo frente a los diferentes idiomas que manejamos y la imposibilidad de contar con traducción simultánea, propusimos un espacio participativo y multimedial dividido en dos instancias, que invitara a los participantes comprometerse en la reflexión sobre la/s forma/ s y vía/s de comunicación posibles en promoción de la salud y las estrategias que nos permiten superar las barreras en la comunicación inherentes a lo cultural y otros factores.

En un primer momento, pusimos a disposición de los asistentes una especie de galería de arte con la exposición de materiales y experiencias de distintos lugares del mundo. De esta manera, los participantes pudieron mirar, escuchar y conocer una variedad de ejemplos no convencionales vinculados a diferentes temas de salud y promoción de la salud, e incluso interactuar con los responsables de las diferentes propuestas, que incluyeron: - dibujos y pinturas de escolares de diferentes países mostrando su punto de vista acerca de la salud (ver texto de Hope Corbin); - fotografías de Hillary McGregor (Canadá), cuya investigación incluye imágenes tomadas por mujeres afectadas por problemas de salud mental y consumo de sustancias;

- reproducciones de fotografías y dibujos realizados por niños en el marco del trabajo de Morten Skovdal (Dinamarca) sobre representaciones de niños encargados del cuidado de familiares afectados por el VIH/SIDA en África; - proyecciones de pinturas de la serie CHAGAS del Proyecciones de pinturas de la serie artista plástico CHAGAS del artista plástico argentino argentino Néstor Favre-Mossier, a modo de ejemplo del trabajo de Mariana Sanmartino (Argentina) que combina contribuciones del arte y las ciencias para hablar sobre la problemática del Chagas; - proyecciones de dibujos sobre la enfermedad de Chagas realizados por niños mexicanos en el marco de las investigaciones de Janine Ramsey (México); - sonidos que hacen pensar en la salud registrados por miembros de la ISECN de diferentes partes del mundo, compilados y editados por Alejandro Valencia-Tobón (Colombia) en una “obra” reproducida en una “estación” situada en el centro del salón, donde se invitaba además a

Fotografías de Hillary McGregor April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 5 ¡Sí, se puede hablar de salud sin usar palabras!... escribir en una sola palabra las sensaciones experimentadas; La segunda parte consistió en un tiempo para que todos los participantes (asistentes y expositores/as) nos uniéramos para producir un trabajo colectivo vinculado con la propuesta general de la sesión. El momento fue coordinado por Vena2, un artista local perteneciente al grupo Cultura Colectiva (ver recuadro) y entre todos nos dejamos llevar por la invitación a representar(nos) y pensar(nos) frente a la salud -individual y colectiva- a partir de elementos de la naturaleza. Como no fue posible concluir la obra durante la sesión, los integrantes de Cultura Colectiva presentes se comprometieron a concluirla con el aporte de niños mexicanos para exhibirla luego en diferentes espacios.

Los niños de distintas partes del mundo responden a la pregunta: "¿Qué me ayuda a estar sano?"

Por Hope Corbin, Traducido por Mariana Sanmartino

Como parte de la sesión de la ISECN "¿Cómo hablar de salud sin palabras?", le formulamos a niños de cuatro localidades la pregunta "¿Qué me ayuda a estar sano?" como una forma de identificar su concepción de la promoción de la salud en sus propias vidas.

Pequeños estudiantes de Argentina, Noruega, Puerto Rico y EE.UU. expresaron sus ideas con crayones, marcadores, lápices de colores y acuarelas.

Los niños tenían edades comprendidas entre tres y doce años y sus respuestas reflejaron componentes regionales y contextuales, así como universales, de promoción de la salud. Muchos hicieron dibujos de frutas y verduras, ejercicio físico, médicos, familiares y amigos. También hubo algunos niños que La sesión completa fue registrada a través de destacaron los conceptos más holísticos de la salud, representando cosas como fotografías y filmaciones que servirán de la imaginación y la paz. El análisis de las imágenes recién comienza pero el arte insumo para dos materiales audiovisuales a de los niños es tan motivador, que dentro de la ISECN estamos explorando la realizar por Alejandro Valencia-Tobón y posibilidad de pedir dibujos a más niños de Cultura Colectiva, los que permitirán dar cuenta otros lugares del mundo en el futuro para de lo ocurrido y difundir la experiencia. desarrollar una imagen aún más sólida de la promoción de la salud según la experiencia La experiencia fue por demás enriquecedora, de los más pequeños a nivel mundial. tanto para quienes pensamos y organizamos el espacio como para quienes asistieron y así lo manifestaron. Desde nuestro lugar, una sensación de satisfacción, emoción y aprendizajes compartidos invadieron el lugar desde el momento mismo de acondicionar el salón asignado y continúan aún pasados los días… y estoy segura que permanecerán, aportando aire fresco a nuestro accionar cotidiano y a nuestros proyectos futuros. *Emily Fisher, Mariana Sanmartino, Hope Corbin, Hilary McGregor, Alejandro Valencia-Tobon, Helga Urke, Sharon Ortiz, y Morgan Stavoestrand Cultura Colectiva (México) Cultura Colectiva es una plataforma de promoción y difusión de la cultura y la producción artística contemporánea de México.

Está formado por un grupo de personas con distintas formaciones (periodistas, psicólogos, músicos, politólogos, matemáticos, artistas visuales) que comparten el interés común en re-significar la idea del gusto por la práctica cultural. Los integrantes de Cultura Colectiva creen que la creatividad, la experiencia estética y la cultura son la base de una sociedad sana y estimulada Buscan generar espacios de exhibición, de convivencia y apreciación, y promover las distintas expresiones culturales. Buscan generar mayor interacción y conocimiento sobre el ámbito cultural y convertirse en apoyo directo para la producción, promoción y difusión de las propuestas artísticas emergentes. La meta es generar mayor consumo cultural y sobrepasar las barrearas que rodean al medio del arte a través de una plataforma que trabaja en tres sentidos: Comunicación, Gestión y Educación.

Sitio web: WWW.CULTURACOLECTIVA.COM April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 6 Yes, it is possible to speak about health without words! ¡Sí, se puede hablar de salud sin usar palabras!

By Mariana Sanmartino, Translated by Helga Urke As part of the 5th Latin American Conference and the 4th Inter-American Conference on Health Promotion and Education, the session “How to speak about health without words?” was held on Wednesday 11th of April in the afternoon. The session was organized and coordinated by the following members of ISECN: Emily Fisher, Mariana Sanmartino, Hope Corbin, Hilary McGregor, Alejandro Valencia-Tobon, Helga Urke, Sharon Ortiz, and Morgan Stavoestrand.

- projections of paintings from the series CHAGAS by the Argentinean artist Néstor Favre-Mossier, to illustrate the work of Mariana Sanmartino (Argentina) who combines contributions from art and science to communicate about Chagas disease;

Due to concerns raised within the group over the different languages we use and the difficulty of simultaneous translation during the session, we proposed a participatory and multimedia session divided in two parts where we would invite participants to engage in reflection on the possible form(s) and way(s) of communicating in health promotion, and the strategies that could allow us to overcome the communication barriers inherent in cultural and other differences.

- sounds that make you think about health, recorded by ISECN members from around the world, compiled and edited

by Alejandro Valencia-Tobón (Colombia) into a piece that was included in the session as a “station” in the middle of the room, where participants were invited to listen and write one word to describe the feelings or thoughts that came to mind from listening.

- projections of drawings illustrating the Chagas disease made

by Mexican children as part of the research conducted by Janine Ramsey (Mexico);

For the first part of the session, we put up a special art gallery for the participants where we exhibited material and experiences from different places in the world. In this way, the participants could view, listen and get to know a variety of non-conventional examples linked to different themes of health and health promotion, as well as interact with the people responsible for the different parts of the exhibition.

These were: - drawings and paintings made by children in primary/ elementary school from different countries where they expressed their point of view in relation to health (see text on the next page by Hope Corbin); - photography from Hilary McGregor (Canada), which is part of her research and includes photos taken by women with mental health problems and substance abuse; - reproductions of photography and drawings made by children within the work of Morten Skovdal (Denmark) about representations of child-led households and children with caretaker responsibilities due to HIV/AIDS in Africa;

Our “sound booth” poster and responses In the second part of the session, participants, exhibitors and organizers gathered to make a mural together related to the theme of the session. This part was coordinated by Vena2, a local Mexican artist associated with the group Cultura Colectiva (see text box on next page). Through this we were encouraged to reflect upon, and represent ourselves in relation to health – both individually and collectively- through elements from nature. As it was not possible to complete the mural within the time frame we had during the conference, the members of Cultura Colectiva wished to finish it with the help of Mexican children by having similar sessions in different places after our session.

The session was documented through photo and video recordings that will serve as contributions for two audio-visual representations that will be made by Alejandro ValenciaTobón and Cultura Colectiva, which will facilitate the documentation and dissemination of the session.

Session attendees reading Morten’ Skoval’s exhibit

The experience was most rewarding, both for those of us who organized it and for those who participated. From our point April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 7 Yes, it is possible to speak about health without words! … of view, a sense of satisfaction, excitement, and shared learning filled the room from the moment we started organizing it, and continued for days after the session...and I am confident that it will persist to provide fresh air into our daily and future projects.

Mural creation led by Vena2 and members of Cultura Colectiva

Children from around the world answer the question: “What helps me be healthy?”

By Hope Corbin As part of the ISECN session “How to Speak About Health without Words”, we asked children in four locations the question “What helps me be healthy?” as a way of ascertaining their conception of health promotion in their own lives. Young students from Argentina, Norway, Puerto Rico, and the USA revealed their ideas in crayons, markers, colored pencils, and water colors. The children ranged in age from three years old to twelve years old and their answers reflected regional, contextual as well as universal components of health promotion. Many of them drew pictures of fruits and vegetables, exercise, doctors, family and friends.

There were also some children who highlighted more holistic concepts of health, representing things like imagination and peace. The analysis of the pictures has really just begun, but the children’s art is so moving that ISECN may explore the possibility of asking more children from other places the question in the future to develop an even more robust picture of health promotion from the experience of the youngest around the world.

Cultura Colectiva (Mexico) Cultura Colectiva is a platform for promotion and diffusion of culture, and production of contemporary art in Mexico.

It is formed by a group of people with distinct backgrounds (journalists, psychologists, musicians, political scientists, mathematicians, visual artists) who share a common interest to re-signify the idea of taste for cultural practice. The members of Cultura Colectiva believe that the creativity, the esthetic experience and the culture are the basis for a healthy and stimulated society.

They work to generate spaces for exhibition, coexistence and appreciation, and to promote different cultural expressions.

They work to generate more interaction and knowledge about the cultural environment and become a direct support for the production, promotion and diffusion of emerging artistic expressions and proposals. The goal is to generate a greater cultural consumption and overcome the barriers around art as a medium through a platform that works in three ways: Communication, Management and Education.

Website: WWW.CULTURACOLECTIVA.COM April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 8 Constitución de la Red Latinoamericana de estudiantes y jóvenes profesionales de la Unión Internacional de Promoción de la Salud (UIPES) 13 de Abril de 2012, Ciudad de México Por Sharon E. Ortiz Martínez El viernes 13 de abril de 2012 en el marco de la V Conferencia Latinoamericana de Promoción de la Salud y Educación para la Salud, y con la asistencia de 31 participantes de los países de México, Ecuador, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Brasil, Italia y Estados Unidos, se celebró la Constitución de la Red de Estudiantes y Jóvenes Profesionales Latinoamericanos de la UIPES. La meta de dicha sesión fue convocar a todos los estudiantes y participantes de la conferencia para formalizar e iniciar una red cuyos participantes representen la masa popular de Latinoamérica.

La sesión tuvo como objetivo promover el debate y la reflexión en torno a la situación actual de la participación de estudiantes y jóvenes profesionales latinoamericanos en redes internacionales de Promoción de la Salud (PS) y Educación para la Salud (EpS). La actividad inició con una particular intervención del Dr. Hiram Arroyo, director de la Oficina Regional de América Latina (ORLA) de la UIPES, quien habló brevemente sobre la importancia que tiene el trabajo en redes para la Promoción de la Salud. También motivó a los participantes a fortalecer y unificar las iniciativas para el trabajo en la red latinoamericana.

Posteriormente la estudiante Sharon E. Ortíz de la Universidad de Puerto Rico presentó los resultados de una consulta técnica desarrollada por la UIPES-ORLA, titulada “Razones que favorecen o limitan la participación de un grupo de estudiantes latinoamericanos en redes de PSy EPS”. Con dicha presentación se abrió paso a conocer algunos de los intereses e inquietudes de los participantes del estudio en torno a las redes de PS y EPS. Esto dio una mirada sobre la perspectiva de las redes en diferentes países de América Latina.

Acto seguido, Emily Fisher, presidenta global de la actual red de estudiantes de la UIPES, la cual es conocida como ISECN (IUHPE Student and Early Career Network), ofreció una presentación sobre el trabajo de dicha red, las líneas de acción

que llevan a cabo y las oportunidades de desarrollo siendo miembros de la misma. Asimismo, Emily puntualizó la importancia de ampliar la red y de fomentar la participación de estudiantes latinoamericanos enmarcados en una red, que tenga la oportunidad de funcionar paralelamente con ISECN. Seguido a esta presentación se abrió un espacio de diálogo donde los participantes tuvieron la oportunidad de hacer preguntas y aclarar sus dudas en torno a la participación en redes.

La segunda parte de la sesión tuvo como objetivo principal formalizar las bases de la de la Red Latinoamericana reflexionando sobre las ideas de los asistentes en torno a la participación de estudiantes y jóvenes profesionales en redes internacionales de PS y EpS. En esta instancia los participantes contestaron varias preguntas relacionadas con: ¿Qué imagino recibir de una red de estudiantes vinculados a la PS? ¿Qué puedo aportar? ¿Cómo me imagino que funcionaría en lo concreto una red? Las respuestas fueron muy variadas y enriquecedoras y sin duda aportarán mucho al desarrollo de la red.

Al finalizar se plantearon unas líneas de acción en relación al trabajo con la red. Uno de los objetivos propuestos fue incluir una mayor cantidad de estudiantes y jóvenes profesionales con intereses en la PS, esto a través de la selección de representantes por países y utilizando diversas herramientas tales como las redes sociales y la radio por internet como medios de comunicación. Otro de los objetivos fue dar a conocer la red en universidades cuyo currículo tenga cursos vinculados a la PS y EPS. Otras actividades sugeridas fueron buscar alianzas en las instituciones universitarias para promocionar la red, diseñar actividades en las instituciones para aumentar la membrecía, educar a los estudiantes sobre la PS, y hacer foros donde los participantes tengan la oportunidad de expresar sus ideas. También se propuso hacer un encuentro de los miembros de la red latinoamericana para una puesta en común de los esfuerzos realizados, viabilizar el funcionamiento de la red y proponer nuevas líneas de acción.

Sin duda hay un gran entusiasmo para trabajar con la red latinoamericana, cada país tiene mucho que aportar a la PS. Es por esto que no se debe dejar todo este esfuerzo sólo en papeles, si no trabajar de manera comprometida para traducirlo en acciones que puedan dejar un legado a las próximas generaciones.

April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 9 Engaging Students in Latin America: First steps to an Active Network 13 April 2012, Mexico City, Mexico

By Sharon E. Ortiz Martínez On April 13 of 2012, during the IUHPE 5th Latin-American and 4th Inter-American Health Promotion and Health Education Conference, 31 participants from Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Brazil, Italy and the USA joined a session to discuss an IUHPE Latin American Students and Young Professionals Network Constitution. The session aimed to engage interested student conference participants to formalize and initiate a network whose members represent the Latin American region, through promoting debate and reflection on the current and potential future participation of this population in international health promotion networks. The activity began with Dr. Hiram Arroyo, the IUHPE Regional Officer for Latin America, who spoke briefly about the importance of networking for health promotion efforts. During this introduction, he also encouraged session participants to strengthen and unify efforts to work in the Latin American region for the network.

Later, Sharon E. Ortiz, a student from the University of Puerto Rico, presented the results of an initial query (through a technique developed by IUHPE-ORLA), entitled “Reasons that favor or limit the participation of a group of Latin American students in the PS and EPS (Health Promoting Schools) network”. During this presentation, Sharon addressed both goals and concerns of the participants about the PS and EPS networks in order to give insight into the perspective of networks in different countries of Latin America.

Then, Emily Fisher, the current Global Chair of ISECN, gave a presentation about the work and opportunities of ISECN. In this presentation, Emily pointed out the importance of expanding the network and encouraged the participation of Latin American students within ISECN. After this presentation, she opened a space for dialogue where participants had the opportunity to ask questions and clarify their doubts about their participation in a network.

The main objective of the latter part of the session was to formalize the foundations of the Latin American Network, using session participants’ ideas regarding the participation of students and young professionals in the PS and EPS network.

In this instance, the participants answered several questions:

Session participants pose for a photo after the session At the end of the session lines of action were raised in relation to future work with the network. One of the proposed actions was to include a greater number of students and young professionals with an interest in PS: this could be done through the selection of country representatives and the use of various tools such as social networks and internet radio.

Another proposed action was to advertise the network in universities whose curriculum had courses related to PS and EPS. Other suggested activities included seeking alliances in the academic institutions to promote the network; designing activities in the institutions to increase membership; educating students about the PS; and creating forums where participants have the opportunity to express their ideas.

Without a doubt there is great enthusiasm for working within a Latin American network, and each country has much to contribute to health promotion and to networking efforts.

This is why we should not leave all this effort only on paper: we must commit to work and to translate words into actions that may leave a legacy to future generations.

If you are interested in learning more about these efforts in Latin America, you can email Sharon Ortiz: sharon.ortiz@upr.edu.

1. What would you like to receive through a student’s network linked to PS? 2. How can you contribute?

3. How do you imagine that the network will function?

The answers were varied and rich and will, without a doubt, contribute greatly to the development of the network.

April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 10 Health Promotion Meetings and Conferences (English) October World Health Summit 2012 Date: October 21-24, 2012 Location: Berlin, Germany The theme for the summit in 2012 is 'Research for Health and Sustainable Development.' Topics include: Education Health Professionals, Translating Research into Policy, Financing Health and Diseases of Modern Environments.

Abstracts submissions are being invited from April to June 15th, 2012.

Website: http://www.worldhealthsummit.org/ Science & Technology Education (STE) for Development, Citizenship and Social Justice Date: October 28 – November 3, 2012 Location: Yasmine Hammamet, Hammamet, Tunisia Proposed topics include Education for Sustainable Development, Human Rights and Health; Cultural, social and gender issues in STE; equity and democracy in STE; and Socio-scientific issues in STE, among other things.

Website: http://www.inedp.org/?conference=ioste-XV&schedConf=Thematic&schedConf=Thematic Inclusion and Innovation Towards Universal Health Coverage Date: October 31 – November 3, 2012 Location: Beijing, China The Symposium will include research on neglected public health priorities, causes of exclusion of populations or problems, and innovations across all health systems facilitating universal health coverage. Deadline for individual abstracts: May 1, 2012.

Website: http://www.hsr-symposium.org/

November 5th European Public Health conference Date: November 7-11, 2012 Location: Portomaso, St. Julian's, Malta The conference theme 'All encompassing Public Health' is to emphasise the fundamental contribution of the wider aspects of life- poverty, basic education, occupation, social well-being and population integration- in determining the health of populations.

Website: http://www.eupha.org/site/future_conferences.php Fourth International Conference on Science in Society Date: November 15-17, 2012 Location: Berkeley, United States The conference invites participants from a range of disciplines and professional areas to explore the relationship between science and its contexts and implications, including the cultural, social, ethical, and political.

Website: http://science-society.com/conference-2012/ First National Sexual and Reproductive Health Conference Date: November 20-21, 2012 Location: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Public Health Association Australia with Sexual Health and Family Planning Australia announce the first Australian conference to bring together practitioners, policy makers and scholars to improve Australia's sexual and reproductive health.

Website: http://www.phaa.net.au/NSRHConference.php

December Convención Internacional de Salud Pública, "Cuba Salud 2012" 3 al 7 de Diciembre de 2012 La Habana, Cuba La convención, auspiciada por prestigiosas organizaciones internacionales, pretende analizar la situación de salud de Cuba y el resto del mundo por lo que será un espacio de reflexión profunda, comprometido y orientado a la discusión de variados temas vinculados con la agenda internacional sobre salud y donde los participantes pueden intercambiar sus experiencias.

Más información en: www.convencionsalud2012.sld.cu/index.php/convencionsalud/2012 For a complete listing of worldwide opportunities regularly posted by Marie Grimm and Annette Kathinka Servan, visit www.isecn.org. Email Marie (marie.grimm05@gmail.com) or Annette (kathinka.servan@gmail.com) if YOU have an opportunity to share!

April 2012/ Abril 2012/Avril 2012

Page 11 New Publications How the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) are reshaping global health and development Published by: Global Health Strategies initiatives (GHSi), March 2012 The report takes an in-depth look at the increasingly important roles Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are playing to advance health and development in the world's poorest countries.

Website: http://www.ghsinitiatives.org/downloads/ghsi_brics_report.pdf

Kazakhstan's Health System The new HiT (Health Systems in Transition) health system review for Kazakhstan has just been released. Since becoming independent, Kazakhstan has undertaken major efforts in reforming its health system. Two comprehensive reform programmes have been developed in the last decade, and there has been progress on promoting evidence-based medicine and developing and introducing new clinical practice guidelines, as well as facility-level quality improvements. However, as this publication shows, key aspects of health system performance are still in need of improvement. A key challenge is regional inequities in health financing, health care utilization and health outcomes, although some improvements have been achieved in recent years.

Website: http://www.euro.who.int/en/who-we-are/partners/observatory/health-system-reviews-hits/full-list-of-hits/ kazakhstan-hit-2012 Earth Institute: World Happiness Report Edited by John Helliwell, Richard Layard and Jeffrey Sachs, The Earth Institute, Columbia University - 2012158 pp. 7.6 It is not just wealth that makes people happy: Political freedom, strong social networks and an absence of corruption are together more important than income in explaining well-being differences between the top and bottom countries. At the individual level, good mental and physical health, someone to count on, job security and stable families are crucial. These are among the findings of the first World Happiness Report that reflects a new worldwide demand for more attention to happiness and absence of misery as criteria for government policy.

Website: http://www.earthinstitute.columbia.edu/sitefiles/file/Sachs% 20Writing/2012/World%20Happiness%20Report.pdf

ISECN Monthly Editorial Team Editor-in-Chief and NARO Regional Editor: Emily Fisher: emilya.fisher@gmail.com Associate Editor and EURO Regional Editor: Peter Delobelle: pdelobel@vub.ac.be French Language Editor: Marie-Claude Tremblay: maryclaude45@gmail.com Global Perspectives Editor: Angelina Wilson: angelina.wilson@student.uib.no Professional Development Editor: Sidney Ortun Flament: sidney.flament.ortun@gmail.com Technical Development Coordinator Marie Josefine Grimm: marie.grimm05@gmail.com

Africa (AFRO) Regional Editor: Gabriel Oguda: oguda@msn.com Europe (EURO) Regional Editor: Francesca Ramondetti: framondetti@gmail.com Latin America (LA) Regional Editor: Mariana Sanmartino: mariana.sanmartino@gmail.com South East Asia (SEARB) Regional Editor: Gamal Saleh: gamal_scientist@yahoo.co.id South West Pacific (SWP) Regional Editor: Jeannette Pastor: jeanettepastor@gmail.com

Health Promotion Connection, April 2012/ Conexiones para la Promoci贸n de la Salud, Abril 2012/ Connexion pour la Promotion de la Sant茅, Avril 2012