Background

June 2005

At the Collaborations for Health Retreat, held in June 2005, Health and the Environment emerged as a key flagship theme with the following potential foci:

• Confronting global health infections: origins, prevention, & management related to infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, Polio, SARS, and West Nile; Public Health;
• Understanding gene-environment interactions: immunities & infections, populations, & germ-cell genomics;
• Investigating the impact of war & violence on health: effecting peace through health;
• Responding to health effects of modern societies (e.g., environmental pollution, work place/home life stress, work-related disability, the stress of acculturation of new immigrant arrivals & refugees).

For more information regarding the retreat, download the report: Retreat and Advance.

January 2006

The theme leaders, Warren Foster, Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Faculty of Health Sciences and Bruce Newbold, Professor in the School of Geography and Earth Sciences organized the first meeting of those who indicated interest in this theme at the June Retreat.


June 2006

A Research Retreat was held on June 1, 2006 designed to showcase existing initiatives and foster conversations among McMaster faculty. The day was highly successful. Faculty were asked to provide a brief slide presentation (apprx 4 slides) regarding their research and education activities in Health and the Environment. The afternoon session allowed participants to reflect on the morning presentations and discuss strategies to move this theme forward. The summary and a list of participants and presentations are mounted on the CfH website.