So You Want to Attend a Public Health Conference?
January 2025 Calendar with dates 3, 8, 22 circled. Image from Canva
Hi everyone, as the year has started, here is a guide to public health conferences to look out for. As a student or young professional, there are many conferences out there, and it may be hard to know which one you should attend.
Below, I am sharing my curated list of spaces I think are good to be in, especially for people interested in health systems, global health, and health policy. Conferences can be expensive, so a good way is to look at funding available through institutions you are affiliated with. If you have an abstract, make sure to submit it, as there is usually funding available for some accepted authors.
Before attending a conference something to consider is the target audience. I have found that conferences targeted specifically to young professionals/students can be less intimidating and cheaper than conferences that attract heads of public health organizations and key people in public health.
As well, getting a visa may be something to consider as well, I am privileged not to have this issue but many people in the public health field struggle with this, and I hear you.
This list will highlight conferences by month. Make sure to bookmark this page so you can prepare to attend some of these. If you cannot attend this year, you can plan to attend another year.
*Note: I have not attended all of these conferences and this post is not sponsored.
What to look for in conferences:
Past conference information: Look at the speakers, theme, and speakers
Location: How expensive is it and do you need a visa, consider flights, food, accommodation
Target audience: Who is the conference targeted to? Industry professionals, students, etc.
January
20 - 24, 2025: World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland
February
7 & 8, 2025: Harvard Africa Health Conference in Boston, MA, USA & Virtual
20 - 23, 2025: Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH) Conference in Atlanta, GA, USA
March
2 - 5, 2025: Africa Health Agenda International Conference (AHAIC), this conference occurs every 2 years
April
25 & 26, 2025: World Health Summit (WHS) Regional meeting in New Delhi, India
TBD: Faces of Africa Conference by the African Public Health Network at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, MD, USA
May
19 - 27, 2025: World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, Switzerland
July
13 - 17, 2025: International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference on HIV Science in Kigali, Rwanda
19 - 23, 2025: International Health Economics Association (IHEA) Conference in Bali, Indonesia
TBD: 2026 Global Health Security Conference (This conference occurs every 2 years)
August
TBD: World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (AFRO) Regional Committee Meeting in Brazzaville, Congo
September
9 - 23, 2025: United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, NY, USA
29 - October 3, 2026: Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Regional Committee Meeting (Washingon D.C, USA)
October
12 - 14, 2025: World Health Summit (WHS) in Berlin, Germany
Check out the New Voices in Global Health and Young Physician Leader opportunities for early-career professionals.
26 - 28, 2025: Canadian Conference on Global Health in Halifax, NS, Canada
This conference usually has a Canadian Global Health Students and Young Professionals Summit the day before the conference. Read about my 2022 experience, here.
TBD: World Health Organization Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO) Regional Committee Meeting in Doha, Qatar
November
2 - 5, 2025: American Public Health Association (APHA) Annual Meeting and Expo in Washington, D.C., USA
9 - 13, 2025: American Association for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) in Toronto, Canada
2026 Health Systems Research (HSR) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. This conference occurs every 2 years.
Consider applying to the Emerging Voices in the Global Health Program, which is a training opportunity associated with the conference.
TBD: Global Model WHO Conference (2025 dates have not yet been released)
December
TBD: Annual Conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation by Academy Health (early December)
TBD: Conference on Public Health in Africa (CPHIA) (end of November/ early December)
Check out the Africa CDC Youth Pre-conference for a fully-funded opportunity for youth to attend the Pre-Conference and conference
While not all of these conferences/meetings are open for the public to register, key decisions are made so it’s good to follow along with the events using the hashtags and being active on your social media. If you are in the city, look for side events that are usually open to the public.
Let me know in the comments which other conferences you would like to attend that are good spaces for public health students and young professionals!
