The 12th International Conference will provide the opportunity to position health impact assessment (HIA) as a strategy of choice to ensure that health is taken into account in all policies1. We will consider a wide range of HIA models, from their theoretical bases to their implementation, in order to develop a common thread and a clear definition. This conference will benefit from the most recent developments in the field and the invaluable contributions of many related disciplines, including political science and public administration.
Several countries, states, and provinces now have expertise and the capacity to act in areas of healthy public policy. They are thus able to innovate, diversify, and transform HIA practice, to innovate, and to develop solid knowledge in this field. For example, Québec's Public Health Act requires that decisions made in various areas of government intervention take into consideration the direct and indirect repercussions on population health.
General goals and target audiences
The 12th International Conference has a general goal to advance HIA practice in light of new knowledge, to prove its relevance, and to stimulate its use in various public and private, decision-making contexts. It will also provide an opportunity to develop partnerships among professionals and policymakers from different fields, at local, national, and international levels.
Specifically, by the end of the 12th Conference, participants will be able to:
- Recognize HIA as a relevant strategy that promotes taking health and social dimensions into consideration in the context of policy development.
- Situate the use of HIA in various application contexts and for various needs in public policy evaluation.
- Estimate the potential of a range of practical experiences and theoretical perspectives from various disciplines in order to improve HIA practice.
- Identify the best HIA approaches and methods based on application contexts and evolving knowledge, from research and evaluation in particular.
- Acquire knowledge and consolidate practice and research networks through discussions with other participants, experts, and decision makers in the field of HIA and public policy.
The 12th Conference is intended for all people whose decisions and actions may have an impact on the health of a population, whether they are practitioners, professionals, managers, policymakers, legal professionals, researchers, or academics, and whether they come from the field of health or other fields including transportation, urban planning and development, the industrial sector, the environment, the food industry, security, education, etc.
The conference will be organized around four thematic tracks:
I. HIA in the policy-making process
The new trend of Health in all policies, as well as the World Health Organization Commission on Social Determinants of Health recommend evaluating the impact of all policies on health and equity. How do we promote the systematic use of evidence as a key element in developing our social, environmental, and economic policies? What are the best approaches for considering population health issues in all policies and in our major social projects? Where does HIA fit in? These are some of the broader issues the conference will seek to address.
II. Institutionalization of HIA: Addressing political and administrative issues
The public administration practice of conducting health impact assessment (HIA) presents particular difficulties, but also offers new opportunities to influence and support the development of healthy public policy. Some governments like those of Quebec, Thailand, and South Australia recently followed in the footsteps of those in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and New Zealand in order to institutionalize HIA practice. These varied institutional experiences have had to address political administrative issues from which we can draw valuable lessons.
III. Diversity of practices: Developing a common thread, maintaining flexibility
HIA is carried out using various approaches based on the context and the need. International experience enables us to better define HIA today and to identify its strengths and weaknesses. There are several perspectives from which to analyze it: ultimate objectives, sources of information used, underlying values, or the public policy development process, etc. The 12th Conference will provide an opportunity to take an analytical look at these practices to improve their relevance and demonstrate their effectiveness. Thus, from a perspective of diverging positions and synergies, we will be able to identify a common thread and to strengthen a common base that maintains the diversity, flexibility, and specific features of each of these practices.
IV. Evaluation, research, and ethics: Advancing HIA practice
Improving HIA practice goes hand in hand with the ability to develop its tools and processes. The 12th Conference seeks to take stock of current research, evaluation methods, and areas for future development. It will pay particular attention to the evaluation of tools, processes, and results as well as ethical issues, in light of the diversity of practices and HIA's ultimate objectives.
The international scientific committee will call on renowned speakers and launch a call for abstracts in order to offer a scientific program that reflects the thematic tracks.
1Here, policies are considered in a broad sense including all decisions taking the form of laws, regulations, strategies, action plans, programs, projects, and action taken by authorities from various sectors and at various local, national and international levels.