Participation
- DATE: Monday, September 14, 2026
- TIME: 10.00–11.30 am (EDT, Washington DC)
- PLATFORM: ZOOM (with registration)
- LANGUAGES: English, Spanish, Portuguese
Context
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has celebrated Wellness Week in the Americas since 2011 to promote a positive, comprehensive, and participatory vision of health across the Region. In 2026, Wellness Week coincides with the 40th anniversary of the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion (1986), a landmark document that positioned health as the result of social, political, environmental, and economic processes extending beyond the health sector alone.
Ottawa Charter (1986)
This document transformed the public health paradigm by shifting the focus from disease to well-being, recognizing that health is created in the everyday settings and social, political and economic context where people live, work, learn, and interact. Its central contribution has been to position health as a resource for everyday life and societal well-being. This is an outcome shaped by interconnected social determinants of health and a goal that requires coordinated political, social, and intersectoral action. Over the past four decades, the Ottawa Charter has helped shape major advances in public health policy and practice across the Region. Its influence can be seen in the integration of health promotion within Primary Health Care, the expansion of healthy settings initiatives, the development of Healthy Municipalities, Cities and Communities networks, stronger intersectoral and community-based approaches, and growing recognition of the social determinants of health as central drivers of health equity.
2026 Campaign
The slogan for this year’s campaign is ‘40 Years of the Ottawa Charter: Together We Continue Promoting Health’. It acknowledges the foundations laid by the Ottawa Charter while underscoring the need for collaborative action among governments, communities, civil society, academia, the private sector, and international organizations to advance health, equity, and well-being. The anniversary offers an opportunity to reaffirm the values of health promotion, celebrate achievements across the Region, and encourage renewed action to ensure that health promotion remains a driving force for sustainable development and societal well-being.
Agenda
Topic
Welcome remarks
Dr. Orielle Solar. Acting Director, Department of Social and Environmental Determinants for Health Equity, PAHO
Opening of the Launch Event
Dr. Jarbas Barbosa. PAHO Director
Dr. Lisa Indar. Executive Director, Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA)
Dr. José Renán De León Cáceres. Executive Secretary, Executive Secretariat of the Council of Ministers of Health of Central America and the Dominican Republic (SE-COMISCA)
Dr. Fernando Araos Dattoli. Executive Secretary of the Andean Health Organization – Hipólito Unanue Agreement (ORAS-CONHU)
Dr. Susan Polan. Deputy Director, American Public Health Association (APHA)
Keynote Presentation: 40 Years of the Ottawa Charter: Achievements, Unfinished Agenda, and Future Perspectives
Dr. Joss Reimer. Chief Public Health Officer, Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)
Panel Discussion: Current Challenges for Health Promotion
Citizen Trust and Social Participation.
Dr. Pablo Anzalone. Healthy Municipalities Network and Social Front for Health, Uruguay
Health Promotion and Climate Action.
Stephen Fawcett. Director of the WHO Collaborating Center for Community Health and Development
New Governance Models for Health.
Dina González Alfaro. Mayor of Calle Larga, Chile, and President of the Regional Healthy Municipalities, Cities and Communities Movement
MODERATION: Mary Lou Valdez. PAHO Deputy Director
Closing Remarks
Dr. Rhonda Sealey-Graham. PAHO Assistant Director