Learning from Eco-social Approaches to Public Health
Blake Poland, Margot Parkes, Angel Kennedy, Carlos Sanchez-Pimienta, Sandra Martin Harris, and De-Ann Sheppard hosted a workshop titled 'Collaborative Autoethnography: Learning from, sharing and generating collective insights to enhance eco-social approaches to public and planetary health' at the CPHA 2024 conference in Halifax on April 23, 2024.
Informed by a CIHR-funded pilot, we shared key features and strengths of CAE as a tool for gathering, unpacking, and reflecting on the experiences of public health researchers, teachers, trainees, and professionals, with emphasis on curricular reform for public health in the Anthropocene. Drawing on results from a collaborative autoethnography of early, mid- and late-career eco-social health educators, innovators and champions the workshop shared insights arising from CAE, including its potential for building community and capacity for collective action. Participants engaged in guided journaling (a core element of CAE) and debrief in breakout groups to gain firsthand experience with CAE and collective sensemaking, followed by a wrap up that explored pathways CAE can enhance public health education, practice and scholarship.