Health Promotion strategies: The role of academic settings for the development of sustainable Health-Promoting Universities

Academic institutions are increasingly taking the leadership for the development of comprehensive health programs in the university setting. As such, the implementation of Health-Promoting Universities (HPUs) continues to advance steadily. Mechanisms for advocacy, implementation, and evaluation of pertinent Health Promotion strategies are being studied, considered, implemented, and evaluated. Events are being conducted worldwide to exchange experiences and to gain insights on how best and most effectively proceed with this integrated approach to achieve and maintain health. The latest international event that addressed the significance of HPUs is the Fourth International Conference on HPU, carried out in Pamplona, Spain, 7-9 October 2009, which followed previous conferences in Chile (2003), Canada (2005), and in Mexico (2007). These events resulted in: (1) the creation of the Iberoamerican Network of Health-Promoting Universities; (2 the formation of Working Groups to explore collaborative activities between and among universities worldwide; and (3) the signing of a Declaration for Strengthening HPUs. The development of HPUs is an ambitious strategy and a challenge for multisectoral and multidisciplinary efforts. Resources aimed to the improvement of conditions of health and well-being, such as HPUs increase the opportunities for better quality education, quality of life, well being, and for the creation of processes for sustainable human development for all people, and with HPUs for all members of the educational communities. Further, the promotion of effective mechanisms for sustainable growth and development of young adults, in optimal conditions of physical and mental health and with social responsibility awareness is fundamental to be able to contribute to the creation and maintenance of a better quality of life and a better world, and as such to contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a global commitment and responsibility to tackle poverty and inequity within and among countries worldwide, in line with the pertinent International Declarations to better people's health and quality of life, starting with the Alma-Ata Declaration on Primary Health Care (1978), and from the Ottawa (1986) to the Bangkok (2005) Charters. This presentation will address the scientific bases for the development of HPUs and the status and trends of on-going international activities.