From theory, to modelling, to interventions and policy

You are invited to join our first International Conference on Urban Mental Health #ICoUMH hosted by the University of Amsterdam in The Netherlands.

Who should attend?

The conference is open to practitioners, academics, policymakers, students, supporters, and allies who are interested in sharing best practices and learning more about mental health in the city, with a focus on interdisciplinary research with complexity science as a backbone.

You can view the conference programme here.

The purpose of this conference is to bring together professionals and interested associates to a one-day knowledge exchange conference. There are invitational expert meetings on October 6th. There will also be workshops on October 8th, which you may attend.

This conference aims to:

1. Forge a dialogue with researchers across various domains from a complexity science perspective

2. Discuss strategies for modelling mental health in the city

3. Share best practices for developing interventions to improve mental health in the city

The conference keynote speakers are as follows (more information to come):

• Prof. Dr. Sandro Galea (Dean of Boston University School of Public Health)
• Prof. Dr. Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg (Professor in the Medical Faculty Mannheim at Heidelberg University)
• Prof. Dr. Andrea Wittenborn (Professor of Human Development and Family Studies at Michigan State University)
• Prof. Dr. Ron Dahl (Director of the Institute of Human Development at UC Berkeley)

With special guest The Mental Elf!

Why the focus on urban mental health?

There is much to gain from urban mental health research. Urban living is on the rise: more than 50 percent of the world’s population currently lives in urban areas, a proportion that is expected to rise to 66 percent by 2050. Urban environments are characterised by features that make city life not only economically attractive and exciting, but also more challenging and stressful than rural environments (‘urban stress’). This environment influences mental health. Therefore, the Centre for Urban Mental Health benefits society by using joint approaches to new interventions and policy-making focused on the promotion of mental health.