On October 28th, Dr. Nancy Krieger gave an informal reportback from the WHO World Conference on Social Determinants of Health. As one of the two U.S.-based speakers invited to present at the conference, Dr. Krieger offered a unique perspective on the event. Highlights of Dr. Krieger’s reportback included an overview of key elements of the Rio Political Declaration (the primary output of the conference), as well as the three alternative documents produced concurrently by the People’s Health Movement, the Asociación Latinoamericana de Medicina Social (ALAMES), and the International Federations of Medical Students’ Associations (IMFSA), respectively. These documents were designed to constructively build on, and also address gaps and weaknesses, in the primary Declaration, and provide concrete action steps for both activists and governments to explicitly address moving forward. Dr. Krieger also shared selected video clips, offering a glimpse into the look and feel of the conference. During the reportback, discussion topics included the presence and absence of gender and sexuality at the conference, and the significance of bringing together participants from many countries and many contexts (government and different groups from civil society, including academia, NGOs, and others advocates), both for the official programming and the extensive organizing that surrounded the conference. For more information on the World Conference and the resulting Rio Declaration, visit: http://www.who.int/sdhconference/en/. For more on the alternative/supplemental documents, check out: People’s Health Movement, ALAMES, and IMFSA. This event was also co-sponsored by the Department of Society, Human Development and Health and HealthRoots.
Women, Gender, and Health
