Event highlights
29 June 2023
The 1st module in the seminar series for early career researchers and young professionals on alcohol and public health took place in person in Tallinn on 14–15 May, as part of a week of events focusing on issues around alcohol control.
Participants from across Europe heard interactive lectures from international experts Dr Jürgen Rehm (Senior Scientist at the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research and Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Canada) and Dr Jakob Manthey (Researcher at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany) and took part in networking and team-building activities.
As an icebreaker to the course, participants discussed their relationship to the topic and reasons for joining the course, which varied considerably.
“Alcohol policy is an incredibly important parameter when we are trying to influence to public health,” said Heikki Luoto, a participant from Finland. “My main reason to apply for the course was to get more scientific data and evidence. I believe this training will increase my competences to participate in the discussion from a public health point of view.”
Dmytro Stoliarenko, a participant from Ukraine, said “My motivation to join the course was my concern about the public health situation in Ukraine during the war and in the recovery phase after it. Noncommunicable diseases and behavioural risk factors are often overlooked during emergencies, which leads to long-term negative consequences. But it’s evident that the situation now hugely impacts alcohol consumption and alcohol abuse in the country – that’s why evidence-based interventions and best practices in policy development became my main points of interest, and I applied for this programme.”
They also shared their impressions from the first session on 14–15 May.
“What I enjoyed most about the first seminars we attended in Tallinn is how interactive they were,” said Chiara Rinaldi, a participant from Italy. “The speakers really took the time to ensure everyone understood the content and there was plenty of time for questions.”
“The first session with Dr Jürgen Rehm was really inspiring for me,” said Gonzalo Sanchez-Garcia, a participant from Spain. “It was one of those presentations that in one hour was able to change the way I perceive alcohol and its implications for public health.”
Participants will take part in 6 online modules (open to everyone upon registration) and a final module that will take place in person in Barcelona in September. Projects developed by the participants over the course of the series will contribute to the EU-funded Evidence into Action Alcohol Project (EVID-ACTION).
The online modules of the course for early career researchers are also now available as a webinar series on alcohol and public health, entitled “Alcohol, inequalities and inequities: evidence and policy options”.
Event notice
Tallinn, Estonia, 14–15 May 2023
Starting in May 2023, WHO/Europe is launching a seminar series for graduate and postgraduate students, early career researchers and young professionals in the areas of public health, social and political sciences, medicine, economics and related fields, who are interested in alcohol from a public health perspective.
This introductory module focuses on alcohol and (public) health and will take place on 14–15 May 2023 in Tallinn, Estonia.
The main purpose of the seminar series is to build capacity among professionals who are at the beginning of their careers, in order to prepare them to work on the topic of alcohol and public health at a national and international level.