Global Health Security Forum
Strengthening Global Health Security Through Collaboration and Innovation
Join public health leaders, practitioners, researchers, and policy-makers to advance collaboration and practical solutions for global health security.
Date: November 5, 2025
Location: UBC Robson Square, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Host: UBC Centre for Disease Control (UBC CDC)
Cost: Free
Public health threats are evolving in complexity and frequency due to a combination of factors including globalization, climate change, zoonotic spillovers, and social inequities. From the COVID-19 pandemic to the reemergence of Mpox and the recent avian influenza outbreaks in British Columbia and the United States, we are reminded of the urgent need for agile, coordinated, and science-informed public health responses.
Recent avian influenza events have not only disrupted agricultural systems but have also posed risks to human health, highlighting the importance of a One Health approach that integrates human, animal, and environmental health. Concurrently, Mpox outbreaks in Canada and globally underscore the necessity of inclusive and community-engaged outbreak response mechanisms. These events exemplify the interconnectedness of global health challenges and the necessity of integrated surveillance and response systems.
At the same time misinformation, vaccine hesitancy and declining trust in public health poses new challenges to preparedness and tackling new and emerging health issues.
The BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) is organizing a Health Security Forum in Vancouver to bring together global leaders, health practitioners, researchers, and policymakers to foster collaboration and knowledge-sharing aimed at strengthening global health security frameworks.
Vancouver, as a gateway to the Asia-Pacific and a hub for health innovation, is situated on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. The city’s diverse population and leadership in equity-informed public health make it an exemplary location to host conversations around inclusive, science and Indigenous knowledge informed- global health policies.
- To assess current status of preparedness within the context of emerging health threats and lessons learned from recent public health emergencies including COVID-19, Mpox, and avian influenza.
- To foster global and regional collaboration on surveillance, data sharing, and public health intelligence.
- To support capacity building in health systems preparedness and equitable response including through the recognition and application of Indigenous-led public health approaches.
- To highlight Canada’s contributions and leadership in global health security.
- Strengthened application of Indigenous rights, knowledge, and thought leadership in health security.
- Strengthened international and interdisciplinary partnerships.
- Discuss and develop strategies to enhance integrated surveillance and data infrastructure.
- Increased alignment with WHO’s One Health and Global Health Security initiatives.
- A published report summarizing insights and actionable recommendations.
- Global and national public health agencies (e.g., WHO, PHAC)
- Provincial and territorial public health
- Academic researchers and epidemiologists
- Indigenous health leaders
- Community-based organizations
- Veterinary and environmental health professionals
- International NGOs and donors
Time
Agenda
12:00 PM – 12:30 PM
Registration and Lunch
12:30 PM – 01:00 PM
Welcome on Coast Salish Lands
Welcome and Opening
01:00 PM – 1:45 PM
Keynote Presentation
Rethinking Global Health Security in the Post-COVID Era — Are we better prepared
Maria Van Kerkhove, Director, Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention at the World Health Organization
01:45 PM – 4:00 PM
Presentations (20 minutes each)
1:45 PM – 2:05 PM
Indigenous health and rights at the forefront of health security
Shannon Waters, Deputy Provincial Health Officer, British Columbia
2:06 PM – 2:26 PM
Public trust and health security
Heidi J Larson, Professor of Anthropology, Risk and Decision Science, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK
2:26 PM – 2:46 PM
Misinformation and tackling misinformation—what is needed at the global scale
Tara Kirk Sell, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
2:47 PM – 3:07 PM
Data, equity and intelligence: Building inclusive surveillance systems
Naveed Janjua, Director, UBC Centre for Disease Control
3:08 PM – 3:28PM
Are we ready to tackle another pandemic: vaccine from development and to uptake?
Natasha Crowcroft, Vice President, Infectious Diseases and Immunization, Public Health Agency of Canada, Canada
3:29 PM – 3:49 PM
One Health approach to tackle emerging threats
Hung Nguyen-Viet, International Livestock Research Institute
4:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Break and Networking
4:30 PM – 5:30 PM
Panel Discussion
Where do we go from here? Building a resilient global health future
Panelists: Maria Van Kerkhove (WHO), Natasha Crowcroft (PHAC), Reka Gustafson (Chief MHO Island Health), Erica Pan (California Department of Health), Bonnie Henry (BC Provincial Health Officer), Shannon Waters (BC Deputy Provincial Health Officer), Tara Kirk Sell (Johns Hopkins Health Security Institute), Stefan Raos (Moderna Canada)
5:30 PM – 06:00 PM
Closing remarks and next steps
Registration
Virtual (Zoom Webinar)
- Virtual registration includes livestream access to the keynote, presentations, panel discussion, and access to the recordings post-event.
- You will receive a confirmation email with the link following your registration.
- Register for Virtual
In-Person (UBC Robson Square, Vancouver)
- By Invitation Only: Initial in-person attendance is limited to invited guests.
- If additional space becomes available, we will open registration more widely.
- In-person registration includes access to the keynote speaker, presentations, panel discussion, lunch, coffee, and post-event recordings.
Invited guests will receive a private link to register for in-person attendance.
Can’t join live?
All registrations include access to the recorded sessions after the event.
Questions?
Please reach out to rounds@bccdc.ca for any questions and a member of our organizing team will be happy to assist you.
Sponsorship provided by:
Featured speakers
Coming soon.