Summit on Shaping Our Planetary Legacy

-
Investigator: Tracey Woodruff, PhD, MPH
Sponsor: NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Science

Location(s): United States

Description

The science linking developmental exposure to environmental chemicals to adverse reproductive health outcomes is robust and in need of timely action to prevent harm. The Summit on Shaping Our Planetary Legacy will leverage an unprecedented opportunity for action on environmental health science --- the convergence of 8,000 diverse reproductive health professionals from across the globe at the World Congress of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics. The Summit will initiate a global effort among reproductive health professionals to prevent exposure to toxic environmental chemicals to ensure healthy pregnancies, healthy children, and healthy future generations.

The grant application requests funds to support a day-long Summit on Shaping Our Planetary Legacy to be held in Vancouver, British Columbia in October 2015. The Summit will address the science linking developmental exposure to environmental chemicals to adverse reproductive health outcomes and to the role of reproductive health professionals in preventing harm. The Summit will bring together 50 leaders in reproductive and environmental health sciences and junior investigators from across the globe for a day of trans-disciplinary knowledge transfer, inspiration, and cross-cultural dialogue. The Summit will coincide with the World Congress of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) and the release of a FIGO Opinion on the reproductive health impacts of toxic environmental chemicals. Thus, the Summit will leverage an unprecedented opportunity for global dissemination of reproductive environmental health science and wide media coverage of the FIGO Congress proceedings. The conference format includes: A one-hour keynote lecture on reproductive environmental health by the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (Dr. Birnbaum to be invited); three one-hour panels and large group discussions on global trends in reproductive environmental health; policies and practices to ensure prevention for all; and the role of reproductive health professionals in prevention. The afternoon provides for small breakout group discussions among health professional society leaders organized by region to identify areas for collaboration and action. The Summit proceedings will be disseminated via short video clips that will provide a highly engaging outreach and education tool to stimulate action on environmental health science going forward after the meeting. The Summit will initiate an enduring global conversation and action between leaders of reproductive health professional societies on how to prevent exposure to toxic environmental chemicals to ensure healthy pregnancies, healthy children, and healthy future generations.