Equal Opportunities for Healthy Development for All Adolescents

Equal Opportunities for Healthy Development for All Adolescents
21st European Region IAAH Conference – Chisinau, Moldova, 2018

At the beginning of October, approximately 500 delegates from 30 countries across Europe and Central Asia were welcomed to the capital city of Chisinau in the Republic of Moldova to discuss ‘Equal Opportunities for Healthy Development for All Adolescents’. As well as being the 21^st European Region IAAH meeting, it was the 3^rd national conference for ‘Health for Youth’, the Moldovan professional association for adolescent health.

The first day presented a wide range of pre-conference skill-building workshops, including parenting adolescents, chronic illness, social media, and male health. The opening ceremony showcased the research of young leaders in Moldova conducted specifically to explore the national impact of issues as diverse as bullying and healthy lifestyles.  The two main conference days were a mixture of plenary, symposium, and debate. Topics reflected the range of concerns of our international audiences, notably examining equity for adolescents in terms of health and development, mental health, and sexual health. We were very pleased that IAAH President Susan Sawyer could join us and participate in a lively roundtable discussion of her Lancet paper, The Age of Adolescence.

The presence of agencies who share IAAH goals was a very positive feature of the conference. Dr Martin Weber (WHO European Regional Office, Denmark) and the Scottish WHO Collaborating Centre previewed a new document with us entitled ‘Adolescent Health in the European Region: Can We do Better?’ This workshop offered participants a very practical way to work with data and use the Global AA-HA! Guidance document in the European context. The new UNESCO Chair in Global Health Education, Professor Didier Jourdan (France), led a workshop and participated in the sexual health plenary. He emphasised the need for closer partnership working between health and education professionals, and the need for teachers to see coherence in their health promotion role with the rest of their educational remit.

IAAH was founded on the principle of strong youth participation; Dr Galina Lesco and her host team achieved a respectful and warm partnership with young people that truly moved those of us who had the privilege to hear them speak about their research and hopes. I also became very aware of their pride in their country and region. One of the adult participants from Moldova said during the meeting, ‘We have no gold. We have no oil. But we have young people.’ We agree wholeheartedly that our young people globally should be considered a priceless national asset. Our learning from meetings such as this will help them to reach their highest potential. We feel that this meeting has been a milestone for IAAH and the European region in many ways, exemplifying what we hope to achieve in all our meetings – a meaningful 2-way exchange of ideas that celebrates diversity and makes our members feel truly connected and empowered.

A meeting resolution that picks up strong consensus themes from the participants is available on the conference website, with many excellent photos, at https://iaahconference2018moldova.yk.md/