Last month, 250 delegates from over 15 countries gathered in Charlottetown for the 6th Global Forum on Health Promotion. The 6th Global Forum marked an important anniversary: 30 years since the creation of the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion in 1986; it celebrated accomplishments in the field; and it examined health promotion in the context of the newly-created United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The 6th Global Forum was also the site of history in the making. A major declaration on Health Promotion – the PEI Declaration – was created with the collaboration of all delegates and with input from contributors from across the globe adding their perspectives via social media and email. The PEI Declaration is a call to action for governments and stakeholders gathering in Shanghai for the 9th Global Conference on Health Promotion, November 21-24, 2016. The declaration calls for stronger collaboration between government and civil society organizations, essential for achieving the SDGs by the target year of 2030.
The messages within the PEI Declaration have evolved into the Charlottetown Call to Action, and are being delivered to world leaders at the 9th Global Conference in Shanghai as a Poster presentation, entitled: Harnessing Civic Engagement – Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through Social Mobilization and Health Promotion Leadership.
“Canada has a duty to maintain its leadership role in the field of health promotion,” says Barb Willet, Executive Director of Health Nexus, who is part of the Canadian delegation bringing the Charlottetown Call to Action to Shanghai. “Thirty years ago, the first ever global health promotion conference resulted in the signing of the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion. Today we must continue to build on this legacy by harnessing the power of civic engagement and the leadership afforded by civil society organizations.” Willet will be joined by fellow Global Forum participants Dr. Suzanne Jackson, Gabriella Sozanski, and PEI’s Deputy Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. David Sabapathy at the 9th Global Conference.
The completed PEI Declaration and the Poster presentation are available online. Highlights from conference proceedings can also be found under the twitter hashtag #6GFHP.
The PEI Department of Health & Wellness was host and title sponsor of the 6th Global Forum on Health Promotion. Co-organizers included The Government of PEI, The Alliance for Health Promotion in Geneva, Groupe entreprises en santé in Québec and PEI’s The Quaich Inc. Presenting sponsors included the Public Health Agency of Canada, and Johnson & Johnson Corporate Citizenship Trust.