19th Annual Crossroads Interdisciplinary Health Research Conference

Story

Crossroads is a student-led and student-centered initiative that began within the School of Health and Human Performance at Dalhousie University and is now affiliated with the Healthy Populations Institute. Crossroads began with a focus on Nova Scotian students and has grown to welcome students from across Canada and beyond. This year’s conference will be the 19th Crossroads, which truly emphasizes its longevity and value to Dalhousie. Through Crossroads, we aim to provide the next generation of leaders and innovators in health and wellness research with a forum to gain valuable skills and experience in knowledge translation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and critical thinking through opportunities to share their research, network with peers and experts, and attend panel discussions, mini-courses, and keynote lectures. Conferences are often unaffordable for students, which leads to little diversity in the knowledge and experiences shared at these events. Therefore, we charge a rate that is in accordance with the funding available to students via conference grants. In order to provide a high-quality and low-barrier conference for students, we graciously rely on sponsors and donors.

Strategy

This year’s conference has a dedicated and skilled planning committee comprised of 11 undergraduate and graduate students within the School of Health and Human Performance and PhD in Health program at Dalhousie University. Together, we organize the planning of all aspects of the conference, including budgeting; booking venues and catering; finding sponsors; planning the conference program; booking panelists, adjudicators, and keynote speakers; and reviewing abstracts. As of January 2023, we have booked our conference venues and the majority of our distinguished speakers, panelists, and mini-course leaders. We have received over 100 abstract submissions from Canadian post-secondary students located coast-to-coast. This year’s conference planning is coming together, and we ask for your financial support to ensure that Crossroads can achieve its mission and continue to thrive year after year.

Impact

Hosting a conference of this magnitude while providing a high-quality experience and low-barrier access is not possible without the support of sponsors and donors. Donations to Crossroads will primarily be allocated to venue and catering costs. We are recognizing students and future leaders in interdisciplinary health research through the provision of an awards banquet, which has not been possible at previous conferences due to financial barriers. For specific fund allocations, a donation of $550 would provide a 3-course dinner for a table of eight student attendees, $600 would provide a 3-tiered student research award in a specific area of health research, and $100-300 would provide a single student research award. By donating to this event, you can help provide student attendees with valuable networking and capacity building opportunities.

If you would like more information about this campaign please reach out to Venna Penney at venna.penney@dal.ca. To mail a cheque please send to the Office of Advancement, 6389 Coburg Road, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS B3H 2A5.