The Owerko Centre Conference
Each year, The Owerko Centre welcomes researchers in child neurodevelopment and mental health to Calgary for the Owerko Centre Conference. We proudly feature the work of researchers and trainees from the University of Calgary and across the world.
An annual conference focused on research
The Owerko Centre conference is an annual event hosted by the Owerko Centre at The Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute. Each conference is aligned with the mission statement of the Owerko Centre: To optimize brain and mental health for children and families through research, education, and community engagement.
However, each conference has it's own distinct theme, or focus area, in a given year. The themes, agenda, and invited guests are carefully selected and curated by an internal conference organizing committee that meets regularly through the year.
Check here for information about the 2022 conference!
Under each of the pull down menus below, you can view and download materials from past conferences.
Previous Owerko Centre Conferences
Keynotes:
Dr. Joanne Weinberg, PhD, Cellular & Physiological Sciences, UBC
Dr. Michael Kobor, PhD, Medical Genetics, UBC
"Epigenetic Embedding of Early Life Experiences - How Environments Get "Under the Skin"
Internal Speakers:
Dr. Ben Gibbard, MD, Alberta Children's Hospital & Christina Tortorelli, MA, RSW
"Understanding the Complexity of Adverse Exposures in the Lives of Children and Families."
Dr. Deborah Kurrasch, PhD, University of Calgary
"Sensing Maternal Challenges in the Developing Rodent Brain."
Keynotes:
Dr. Russell Schachar, MD, FRCP, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
"Genetics of ADHD: Scientific Progress and Clinical Implications."
Dr. Yona Lunsky, PhD, The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto
"Family Mental Health and Neurodevelopmental Disabilities: Challenges and Innovations."
Internal Speakers:
Dr. Catherine Lebel, PhD, University of Calgary
"Altered Brain Development in Children with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure."
Dr. Carly McMorris, PhD, RPsych, University of Calgary
"Anxiety in Children and Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Effectiveness of Facing Your Fears."
Keynotes:
Dr. John F. Cryan, PhD, University College Cork, Ireland
"A Gut Feeling About the Brain - Microbiome as a Key Regulator of Neurodevelopment and Behaviour."
Dr. Evdokia Anagnostou, MD, Bloorview Research Institute, Toronto
"Thinking Differently About Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Lumping vs Splitting."
Internal Speakers:
Dr. Jane Shearer, PhD, University of Calgary
"Dietary Modulation in Pediatric Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Translational Perspective."
Dr. Gerald Giesbrecht, PhD, University of Calgary
"‘Sins of the fathers’ and the Psychobiology of Stress: How Good Triumphs over Adversity in the Intergenerational Transmission of Stress."
Keynotes:
Dr. Erik Willcut PhD, University of Colorado, Boulder
"Neuropsychological and Neurobiological Studies of ADHD, Learning Disabilities, and Their Comorbidity: Implications for Clinical Diagnosis and Translational Research."
Dr. Jonathan Weiss, PhD, York University, Toronto
"Thinking Differently About Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Lumping vs Splitting."
Internal Speakers:
Dr. Richelle Mychasiuk PhD , University of Calgary
Dr. Tamara Pringsheim, MD, FRCPC, Alberta Children's Hospital