Social Environments for Health Webinar Series Part Two: Stories from the Field

The second in our webinar series on Social Environments for Health, this panel discussion will feature three practitioners working at the local public health level. Alyssa Bedard from Planet Youth Nipissing, Inge Roosendaal from Ottawa Public Health, and Ben Gallagher from the City of Mississauga will provide on-the-ground examples of how their organizations are building healthy social environments for local communities. Andrea Bodkin, MPH, will moderate the panel and Q&A session.

Check out the first webinar in this series, Exploring Social Environments for Health.

Intended audience: People who work in health promotion, chronic disease prevention and the built environment in settings such as public health, community health, and at the municipal level.

Note: For the best live experience, please ensure you are using a current version of Zoom (6.1.0 or higher) in Chrome or another modern browser to support interactive features.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Describe the impacts of social environments on health.
• Define healthy social environments and describe their components, as well as how to measure them.
• Identify opportunities and strategies to build healthy social environments at the local level.

Presenter(s): Alyssa Bedard, Ben Gallagher and Inge Roosendaal

Alyssa Bedard is a Community Development Coordinator with North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit. She coordinates the Planet Youth Nipissing initiative, which is based on the Icelandic Prevention Model and aims to prevent teen substance use and improve wellbeing by addressing risk and protective factors in the social environment. She has been in public health for 8 years, working in partnership with schools and school boards on health promotion initiatives, and focusing on tobacco and substance use prevention.

Ben Gallagher is the Manager of the City of Mississauga’s Office of Emergency Management. He holds a Masters Degree in Public Safety from Wilfrid Laurier University and an Honours Bachelor Degree from York University. The City of Mississauga was the recipient of the 2022 Prepared Community Award, presented by the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) Canada Chapter, and the 2022 Emergency Management Exemplary Service Award in the Resilient Communities category, presented by Public Safety Canada.

Inge Roosendaal is a registered professional planner and has worked at the intersect of urban planning and public health for 20 years. She is currently the Senior Planner for Ottawa Public Health and is co-located with the City of Ottawa’s Planning, Development and Building Services Department. Inge is experienced in the development of healthy public policy and advancing strategic partnerships on inter-sectoral projects. She is committed to developing innovative new approaches to promoting healthy urban design through linking public health interests to urban planning processes.

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies or views of Public Health Ontario, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by Public Health Ontario.

Accessibility

Public Health Ontario is committed to complying with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). If you require accommodations to participate in this event, please contact 647-260-7100 or capacitybuilding@oahpp.ca.

Register Here