Collaborations for Change is excited to release the summary report from the 2025 conference. Hosted by the Best Practices Network and the University of Calgary Community Mental Health and Well-Being Strategy, the two-day virtual event brought together students, practitioners, student life professionals, faculty, and researchers from across Canada, as well as Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States to exchange knowledge and emerging and promising practices to enhance the mental health and well-being of post-secondary students. 50 post-secondary institutions were represented across our registrants and presenters. 

Conference attendees participated in a variety of activities including keynote sessions, Understanding the Smartphone Generation’s Mental Health by Jean Twenge (San Diego State University) and Inspiring Teachers by Angela Sterritt. The program also featured 28 peer-reviewed sessions and 7 rapid-fire presentations designed to spotlight emerging research and practice. 

Programming was organized across five thematic conference streams: 1. Transforming post-secondary culture through strategy and action 2. Integrating well-being into teaching practices: promoting a healthy classroom environment 3. Supporting students amidst global events 4. Post-secondary student mental health research: engaging the next generation of student researchers 5. Shifting to a health promotion approach to address post-secondary mental health and well-being. 

The conference summary outlines participation and reach, an evaluation of the conference, and conclusions and recommendations. It also highlights key themes that emerged from the presentation content, including 1) Student partnership as a driver of meaningful change, 2. Shifting from individual services to integrated, systems-level approaches, and 3. Centring equity-deserving populations in post-secondary mental health. 

The 2025 conference demonstrated the continued relevance and impact of a national forum dedicated to advancing post-secondary student mental health. Building on this momentum, future C4C conferences will continue to strengthen opportunities for connection, learning, and collective leadership to support meaningful and sustainable change across post-secondary environments.

Learn more about the 2025 conference:

English Conference Summary: C4C Summary 2025_ENG (PDF)

French Conference Summary: C4C Summary 2025_FR (PDF) 

Collaborations for Change is excited to release the summary report from the 2023 conference. Hosted by the Best Practices Network and the University of Calgary Campus Mental Health Strategy, the 1.5-day virtual event brought together students, practitioners, student life professionals, faculty,
and researchers from across Canada to exchange knowledge and emerging and promising practices to enhance the mental health and wellbeing of
post-secondary students.  

Over 294 conference attendees participated in a variety of activities including an opening keynote session by Dr. Chika Stacey Oriuwa, formal presentations, an Indigenous Elders panel, an Indigenous Counsellor panel, a student panel, poster sessions, mindfulness breaks, and networking opportunities. There were 30 presentations across five streams: (a) Collaborations and Partnerships; (b) Impact; (c) Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Accessibility (EDIA); (d) Decolonization and Indigenization; and (e) Systemic Approaches.

The conference summary outlines participation and reach, an evaluation of the conference, and conclusions and recommendations. The summary also highlights key themes that emerged from the presentation content, including co-designing research studies and initiatives with students as partners, utilizing peer-support as an impactful service model, and centering the experiences of equity-deserving students. 

Learn more about the 2023 conference:

English Conference Summary: C4C Summary 2023_ENG (PDF)

French Conference Summary: C4C Summary 2023_FR (PDF)