Plenary Speakers
Sweetbert Anselimus
Sweetbert Anselimus
6:00-7:00pm Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Sweetbert Anselimus is a young social psychologist, academic, and mental health and inclusion advocate committed to providing mental health and psychosocial support to young people and vulnerable groups. His work focuses on fostering inclusive and supportive environments for marginalized populations. He serves as a Youth Advisor at the Being Initiative (Grand Challenges Canada), Executive Director of the Psychosocial Welfare Organization in Tanzania, and an Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Educational Psychology and Curriculum Studies at Mkwawa University College of Education, University of Dar es Salaam. Sweetbert has participated in various research and social intervention projects, including Mental Health in Resource-Limited Settings: Amplifying Youth Voices and Approaches and the USAID Kizazi Kipya Project.
Bobby Duffy
Bobby Duffy
2:00-3:30pm Thursday, 20 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Bobby Duffy is Professor of Public Policy and Director of the Policy Institute. He has worked across most public policy areas in his career of 30 years in policy research and evaluation, including being seconded to the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit.
Bobby sits on several advisory boards, including chairing both the Campaign for Social Science and the CLOSER Advisory Board, and is a member of the Executive of the Academy of Social Sciences, a trustee of British Future and a Senior Fellow of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto.
His first book, The Perils of Perception – Why we’re wrong about nearly everything, was published by Atlantic books in several countries, drawing on a set of global studies on how people misperceive key social realities. His latest book, Generations: Does when you’re born shape who you are?, came out in September 2021 and challenges myths and stereotypes around generational trends, seeking a greater understanding around generational challenges.
Ana Echeverri
Ana Echeverri
8:30-10:30am Thursday, 20 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
With over 15 years of experience designing, implementing, and evaluating impactful public policies, Ana Echeverri Correa has held leadership roles at the federal, state, and international levels. She has worked with organizations such as the United Nations and USAID, contributing to initiatives on gender equality, criminal justice reform, and violence prevention. As Executive Director of Reinserta, Ana oversees strategic growth, leads multidisciplinary teams, and ensures the implementation of high-quality intervention models. Her career reflects a deep commitment to creating systemic change and addressing the root causes of violence, positioning Reinserta as a leader in transforming the lives of children and youth in Mexico.
Emmy Egulu
Emmy Egulu
8:30-10:30am Friday, 21 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Emmy has worked in roles spanning government, academia, and non-profit organizations. He has held roles with the International Development Research Centre, University of British Columbia and Foundry, where he supported projects designed to enhance health outcomes in Canada and the Global South. Emmy is also an activist, working to expand access to mental health resources and promote student well-being in Ontario, among other initiatives. His work has been featured in media outlets including the CBC, Toronto Star, CityNews, and Canada’s National Observer. Emmy holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Waterloo.
Seren Friskie
Seren Friskie
9:30-10:30am Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Seren Friskie (She/They) is a Two-Spirit Equity & Engagement Specialist at Foundry BC, Research Associate at SARAVYC at UBC, and an Reproductive Justice Educator. Néhiyaw, Stó:lō, French, and German, Seren is deeply committed to advancing health equity, justice, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) while advocating for 2SLGBTQIA+ communities.
Their work centers on reproductive health, Indigenous rights, equity and anti-racism. Advocating for gender affirming care, and creating culturally safe health services. Seren has worked alongside Indigenous communities to improve access to culturally safe healthcare and reproductive rights. Rooted in traditional teachings and intersectionality, they advocate for systemic change. Seren lives on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
Abel Paul George
Abel Paul George
2:00-3:30pm Thursday, 20 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Abel Paul George is a Malayali American Design Futurist. Over the past 10 years, Abel has gone on to work across industries in Tech, Consumer Product, Fashion, and Entertainment, leading strides in innovation across multiple Fortune 500s to shift the future paradigm of culture and it’s ever growing utility across communities. Abel looks to introduce his personal ethos of Innovation, Expansion, Transparency, and Accessibility at a new world scale.
Joshua Gordon
Joshua Gordon, M.D., Ph.D.
8:30-10:30am Friday, 21 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Joshua A. Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., became the Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University in August of 2024. This is his second stint at Columbia, having been a member of the faculty from 2004 to 2016, where he conducted research, taught students and residents, and maintained a general psychiatry practice. Immediately prior to re-joining Columbia, Dr. Gordon served as the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) from 2016 until 2024, where he oversaw the principal US Government agency responsible for mental health research. Dr. Gordon received M.D. and Ph.D. degrees in neuroscience from the University of California, San Francisco, and completed a psychiatry residency and research fellowship at Columbia University prior to joining the faculty in 2004.
Dr. Gordon’s research employs an integrative systems approach towards understanding the neurobiology underlying working memory and its disruption by genes of relevance to schizophrenia. Utilizing a range of modern neuroscience techniques, including in vivo neurophysiology and optical and pharmacological circuit manipulation, his lab has demonstrated a crucial role for oscillatory neural dynamics in the long-range functional connectivity in the hippocampal-prefrontal circuit in rodents. Through studying mice carrying mutations that, in humans, confer risk for schizophrenia, he has developed and tested causal hypotheses for how genetic variants confer risk for disease. By disrupting these processes and then testing pharmacological and neuromodulatory approaches to reversing this disruption, his work has laid the groundwork for potential translation.
Dr. Gordon is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. His work has been recognized by several prestigious awards, including the NARSAD Young Investigator Award from the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation; the Rising Star Award from the International Mental Health Research Organization; the A.E. Bennett Research Award from the Society of Biological Psychiatry, and the Daniel H. Efron Research Award from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.
Asante Haughton
Asante Haughton
8:30-10:30am Thursday, 20 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Hey! It’s me, Asante Haughton. I speak, I write, I facilitate engaging workshops and I consult with corporate, non-profit and government agencies, helping to find mental health, equity and leadership solutions.
I have delivered countless keynotes around the world, and have spoken in front of more than 100,000 people. So yeah, I get around on the talking circuit a bit–as a TEDx speaker, a frequent conference panelist, and hope-ologist (FYI–I made that one up!). My talks focus on empowerment, community building, mental health and race, always with a little humour and personal narrative sprinkled in.
I’ve worked with folks like VICE Media Group, Bell Media, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, the Government of Canada and others to support the creation and delivery of media campaigns, policy building, getting comfortable with race/equity as well as de-stigmatizing and de-mystifying mental health. My specialty is identifying the little problems that often lead to the big problems and simplifying them so that they can be solved through manageable step by step processes. It’s been a joy and an honour to help so many folks find simple solutions to complex challenges.
I have dedicated my entire career to equity and mental health work, focused on youth. In 2020, I co-founded a non-profit called the Reach Out Response Network, to create a fourth emergency service in Toronto, where non-police mobile crisis teams are the first responders for mental health calls. In 2022, Toronto City Council voted unanimously in favour of these teams, creating the Toronto Community Crisis Service. Four pilots have been implemented, with an accelerated plan for city-wide implementation by 2026.
Dr. Myrna Lashley
Dr. Myrna Lashley
2:00-3:00pm Friday, 21 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Dr. Myrna Lashley, CM, – psychologist, Associate professor Division of Psychiatry, McGill University; researcher Lady Davis Institute, Jewish General Hospital. First Black Associate dean John Abbott College; recognized clinical, teaching, authority in cultural psychology;. Member of newly-founded geopsychiatry consortium. Recipient of many awards and accolades, including distinguished scholar, Concordia university 2024; Order of Canada 2024; Horary Doctorate, University of Ottawa 2024; CBC Changemaker 2021; Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee award 2012;.
Current research: intersections of culture, mental health and security.
Currently Barbados’s Honorary Consul to Montreal
Judah Njoroge
Judah Njoroge
6:00-7:00pm Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Judah Njoroge is a passionate mental health advocate and program strategist dedicated to strengthening youth resilience across East Africa. As Youth Programmes Lead for The Resilience Project (TRP), he designs and implements initiatives that equip young people with the skills and support they need to navigate mental health challenges.
With expertise in mental health systems, youth engagement, and digital solutions, Judah leverages data-driven approaches to enhance service delivery and policy advocacy. He has led impactful projects at community, national, and global levels, working with governments, NGOs, and international organizations to bridge gaps in mental health accessibility.
Judah has represented youth perspectives at global platforms, including the United Nations Civil Society Conference and the UN Summit of the Future. His work focuses on suicide prevention, stigma reduction, and integrating technology into mental health solutions.
Through TRP and past leadership roles, he continues to champion inclusive, evidence-based mental health programs, ensuring young people across East Africa can access the support they need to thrive.
Cat Pham
Cat Pham
6:00-7:00pm Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Cat Pham is a psychology undergraduate student from RMIT University Vietnam. Cat takes honor in co-designing a mental well-being intervention app for Vietnamese youths with Y-PRIME researchers. She contributes to the project with lived experience in mental health and her perceptiveness to user experience.
Cat is driven to further explore how people interact with technology and how it affects our mental health and well-being. Most importantly, she cares about making technology usable and inclusive for the ageing population.
Shuranjeet Singh
Shuranjeet Singh
8:30-10:30am Thursday, 20 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Biography: Shuranjeet Singh is the founder and director of Tarakī, which works with Punjabi communities to reshape approaches to mental health. Shuranjeet started Tarakī after his experiences of mental health challenges whilst at university. Alongside this, Shuranjeet works as a consultant with the Wellcome Trust.
Plenary Presentation Title: Fireside Chat – Building a Movement in Youth Mental Health
Plenary Description: “Shuranjeet Singh will explore the crucial intersection of youth mental health and sustainable community organising. This fireside chat will delve into the pressing challenges facing young people’s mental wellbeing today, particularly within South Asian communities, and examine how grassroots movements can create lasting positive change.
Shuranjeet will share insights from Taraki’s groundbreaking work in transforming mental health conversations within marginalised communities. The discussion will address how modern pressures – from social media to academic expectations – impact youth mental health, and explore innovative approaches to supporting young people’s wellbeing.
Drawing from his experience leading Taraki, Shuranjeet will discuss practical strategies for building sustainable social movements that prioritise both community impact and organiser’s wellbeing. He will address key questions such as: How can we create truly inclusive mental health spaces? What role do cultural sensitivity and intergenerational dynamics play in mental health advocacy? How can organisations maintain momentum while preventing burnout?
The conversation will also explore Taraki’s unique approach to community engagement, highlighting how youth voices can be meaningfully centred in mental health. Shuranjeet will share lessons learned from navigating cultural complexities while challenging mental health stigma, offering valuable insights for anyone interested in community organising and social change.”
May van Schalkwyk
May van Schalkwyk
2:00-3:30pm Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
May is a research fellow in the commercial determinants of health and public health doctor working at the University of Edinburgh. May’s research aims to describe and explain how commercial actors influence ideas, knowledge, science and policy making. She publishes research on the tobacco, alcohol, gambling, fossil fuels, opioid, pesticide and firearm industries, including on the activities of industry-funded organisations, influence of youth education and safety programmes, and the use of metaphor as corporate political activity.
Dr. Nancy Young
Dr. Nancy Young
9:30-10:30am Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Dr. Nancy Young is a Senior Scientist at the CHEO Research Institute. She leverages measurement science to elevate the voices of children and youth. In 2009, she was invited to partner with a First Nation, in the creation of a new measure, with the aim of increasing wellness among Indigenous children and youth across Canada. She continues to strive to ensure Indigenous youth voices are at the forefront of research as the lead for the Aaniish Naa Gegii Team. Through collaboration and innovation, her team has improved access to high-quality local data that informs health services planning for youth.
Marco Zenone
Marco Zenone
2:00-3:30pm Wednesday, 19 March, 2025, East Ballroom AB
Marco Zenone (he/him) is a global health policy researcher working to create safer online environments for vulnerable and underserved groups. He is a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of British Columbia School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. His research (1) critically examines digital platforms for their contributions to global public health harms, (2) monitors and pre-emptively debunks harmful health dis-and-misinformation, and (3) democratizes science communication and promotes public engagement in science. Marco has published 38 peer-reviewed research articles in journals such as the BMJ, The Lancet, American Journal of Public Health, and JAMA Network Open.