Program
Subject to change; more details to come.
2026 ACHRI Research Symposium
Bringing together ACHRI members, trainees, research staff and partners to share impactful child health and wellness research across disciplines.
Thursday, Nov. 19, 8:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 20, 8:30 a.m. – 3:15 p.m.
MacEwan Hall & Ballroom, UCalgary
Questions about the symposium? Email r4kevents@ucalgary.ca
Thursday, Nov. 19
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Check-in, Breakfast & Poster Setup
9:00 - 9:45 a.m. Opening Remarks & Indigenous Blessing
Elder Dustin Walter & Knowledge Keeper Shelly Eli
9:45 - 10:45 a.m. Keynote #1: Dr. Caroline Tait
10:45 - 11:00 a.m. Break & Connection
11:00 - 11:30 a.m. Trainee Oral Talks
11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Panel Discussion: What Does Transdisciplinarity Mean for Child Health Research?
Drs. Carolyn Emery and Benedikt Hallgrímsson & Anamika Buchan
12:30 - 2:30 p.m. Lunch, Poster Session & Booths
Partner Booths
- AbSPORU (Alberta SPOR SUPPORT Unit)
- ACH Clinical Trials & ACH BioCORE
- Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation & Centre for Research & Innovative Care Consultation
- A-MEDICO & UCalgary Department of Biomedical Engineering
- UCalgary Calgary Centre for Clinical Research
- UCalgary Institutes for Transdisciplinary Scholarship
- UCalgary Living Medicines Initiative
2:30 - 4:00 p.m. Concurrent Workshops
4:00 - 5:30 p.m. Trainee Poster Awards, Closing Remarks & Reception
Friday, Nov. 20
8:30 - 9:00 a.m. Breakfast
9:00 - 9:30 a.m. Opening Remarks & Indigenous Blessing
Elder Dustin Walter & Knowledge Keeper Shelly Eli
9:30 - 10:30 a.m. Keynote #2: Dr. Nicole Culos-Reed
10:30 - 11:00 a.m. Trainee Oral Talks
11:00 - 11:15 a.m. Break & Connection
11:15 am - 12:45 p.m. Concurrent Breakout Science Sessions
12:45 - 1:45 p.m. Lunch
1:45 - 2:45 p.m. Keynote #3: Dr. Deborah Kurrasch
2:45 - 3:15 p.m. Trainee Oral Talk Awards & Closing Remarks
Keynote Speakers
Dr. Caroline Tait
Dr. Caroline Tait, PhD is a professor in the Faculty of Social Work and the Department of Community Health Sciences at UCalgary. She is the Indigenous Lead for the Indigenous Platform under the Canadian Donation and Transplantation Research Program. Her research is community-based, highly applied and critical of historical and present-day discrimination and oppression. Dr. Tait addresses structural racism that contributes and perpetuates inequities experienced by First Nations, Métis, and Inuit (FNMI) peoples across the human service sector (health, social welfare, justice, education).
Dr. Nicole Culos-Reed
Dr. Nicole Culos-Reed, PhD is a professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology at UCalgary, and also holds appointments with the Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, and with the Department of Psychosocial Resources, Tom Baker Cancer Centre. Nicole is the director of the Health and Wellness Lab and the Thrive Centre, a dedicated fitness facility for individuals living with and beyond cancer. Nicole's expertise is in health and exercise psychology, with a focus on health behaviour change. Nicole’s research focuses on developing, implementing, and evaluating sustainable community-based exercise oncology programs, building exercise into standard cancer care.
Dr. Deborah Kurrasch
Dr. Deborah Kurrasch, PhD is a professor in the departments of Medical Genetics and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology. She is the ACHRI Scientific Director of Discovery Science, Deputy Department Head for the Department of Medical Genetics and Deputy Director for the Department of Neuroscience at UCalgary. Her research explores how hypothalamic neurons become organized into distinct neuronal clusters (nuclei), and how the cellular and molecular mechanisms guide the movement into nuclei to identify novel disease pathways that can open new avenues of drug discovery.
Abstract Info
- Abstract submissions are open to ALL UCalgary graduate students and postdocs doing maternal and child health & wellness research
- Please note that abstract submission and symposium registration forms are separate
- Those selected to present orally and/or a poster will be contacted on or by Monday, Nov. 2 with additional details/instructions.
- Abstract Deadline: Oct. 26 at noon
Poster Presentations
- Poster Sizes: All sizes and orientations are acceptable as long as they do not exceed the poster board space of 3.9 feet wide x 3.9 feet high.
- Poster winners will be announced on Nov. 20.
- Please acknowledge your funding source on posters. If your research is funded by ACHRI, please use the ACHRI logo found here.
Oral Presentations
Students should prepare their presentations for a broad audience outside of their field of study who may know little about the research area.