Scholars and Students from Four Canadian Universities Gather for 3rd Annual CNIW Health & Biomedical Symposium in Toronto

CNIW News:

After a year of planning and several months of preparation, the 3rd CNIW Health & Biomedical Symposium will open on March 19th at the Hard House, one of the most well-known buildings on the University of Toronto St. George Campus. The main theme for this year’s symposium is the health and wellbeing of new immigrants and vulnerable groups.

Dr. Peter Wang, the Director of CNIW and one of the two co-chairs of the event, says that scholars and students from four Canadian universities will participate in the symposium. Seven invited scholars will share their research findings related to the COVID-19 pandemic on a wide range of topics, including anti-Asian discrimination, the psychological and economic impact of COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccination, urban health, geography and spatial distribution of health inequity, and legal issues.

“Seven invited scholars will share their research findings related to COVID-19 pandemic on a wide range of areas” Dr. Lixia Yang says “anti-Asian discrimination, psychological and economic impact of COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccination, urban health, geography and spatial distribution of health inequity, and legal issues.”

Ms. Kashish Jafri, an MSc student from Memorial University under Dr. Peter Wang’s supervision, says, “I am excited to travel from St. John’s to Toronto and share my work at the symposium.” Eight graduate students from four universities will also present their research work.

The CNIW Health and Biomedical Symposium is usually held each year during the spring and early summer seasons with varying themes. The first symposium was held in 2019, but there was a one-year interruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s event is jointly sponsored by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) with support from Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN), Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), and the University of Toronto.