Schedule

The breakfast buffet will be located in the hallway outside the Georgian Bay Ballroom.

Welcome to Day 2 of InSPIRE 2025! Join us for our conference opening led by Dr. Christopher Canning.

This panel will focus on the topic of advancing social change through research in mental health and substance use settings . We are excited to welcome Shauna Cronin, Shawn Fisk (from CAPSA) and Dr. Benedikt Fischer as our panelists for this session, moderated by Dr. Christopher Canning. The traditional notion that researchers must remain neutral is being challenged by a growing recognition that researchers must also engage with the public, policymakers, and communities to ensure that findings lead to change. Mental health and substance use research has direct implications for public health and social justice. Yet, despite robust evidence supporting harm reduction, trauma-informed care, and structural interventions, for example, research and other forms of evidence are increasingly sidelined in favour of political ideologies, economic interests, and misinformation. Researchers working in these fields must ask: What is our role in ensuring that evidence drives action? How do we engage with communities and policymakers in ways that uphold research integrity and social responsibility? What does social responsibility look like for publicly-funded researchers in mental health and substance use settings? This panel will explore the intersection of research and advocacy with a focus on how researchers can communicate findings, engage with communities, and advocate for policies and practices that reflect the best available evidence, including lived expertise, experiential knowledge, and Indigenous epistemologies. Panelists will discuss challenges in bridging research and policy/practice, and whether or not researchers have an ethical imperative to engage in advocacy for informing social change.

Keynote & Panel Presentations

Workshops will start with a brief presentation followed by interactive discussions or activities with the group, exploring ideas, tools or skills, and connections.

Innovations in mental health & substance use health
Digital mental health and substance use health
Collaborations & partnerships
Knowledge translation & mobilization

Workshops will start with a brief presentation followed by interactive discussions or activities with the group, exploring ideas, tools or skills, and connections.

Recovery- and trauma-informed practices and systems
Criminal justice and forensic mental health research
Collaborations & partnerships
Patient-centered approaches

Presenters will provide a brief overview of a project, program, best practice or policy focusing on recovery- and trauma-informed practices and systems.

Recovery- and trauma-informed practices and systems

Attendees can participate in a networking session in the Georgian Bay Ballroom.

Adriana will be guiding us through a 30 minute chair yoga sequence, designed to give you relief physically, mentally, and emotionally. Often, when sitting at a desk and working on computers or phones, our bodies can become stiff in the neck, shoulders, hands, and low back. Adding proper alignment as well as movement to our bodies can give relief to those physical ailments- even taking them away completely! Giving ourselves time to breathe deeply and acknowledge our feelings can positively impact our thoughts and feelings, drastically improving them as our perspective shifts.

This mindfulness-based wellness workshop is an engaging experience that combines traditional and creative approaches to mindfulness. Participants will explore a variety of short practices and have the opportunity to share insights about their experiences. The workshop is suitable for both individuals new to meditation and those who already have an established practice.

The lunch buffet will be located in the hallway outside the Georgian Bay Ballroom.

Presenters will share a 5-minute presentation providing insights into current or emerging work, case studies, or innovative projects.

Note: Please bring your phone or laptop to this session to participate in the interactive activities. Workshops will start with a brief presentation followed by interactive discussions or activities with the group, exploring ideas, tools or skills, and connections. This session will include 2 workshops aligned on similar topics.

Bridging research and impact
Innovations in mental health & substance use health
EDI in mental health & substance use health research
Recovery- and trauma-informed practices and systems
Collaborations & partnerships
Knowledge translation & mobilization
Applied research approaches

Presenters will provide a brief overview of a project, program, best practice or policy focusing on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in mental health and substance use health research, and/or upstream prevention and promotion approaches.

EDI in mental health & substance use health research
Moving upstream: prevention and promotion

Workshops will start with a brief presentation followed by interactive discussions or activities with the group, exploring ideas, tools or skills, and connections.

Bridging research and impact
Innovations in mental health & substance use health
EDI in mental health & substance use health research
Knowledge translation & mobilization
Patient-centered approaches

Workshops will start with a brief presentation followed by interactive discussions or activities with the group, exploring ideas, tools or skills, and connections.

Bridging research and impact
EDI in mental health & substance use health research
Moving upstream: prevention and promotion
Collaborations & partnerships
Implementation science & practice

The conference will conclude with closing remarks from Dr. Christopher Canning.