Discovery Summit: From Vision to Impact

Date: June 17 & 18, 2026

Time: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm

Location: Delta Hotels Toronto Mississauga | 3670 Hurontario St, Mississauga, ON

The Network for Healthy Populations is pleased to host the NHP Discovery Summit 2026, a two-day gathering focused on community-based approaches to improving population health and advancing health equity across Peel Region.

This year’s summit will bring together community leaders, policymakers, researchers, public health professionals, healthcare partners, and local organizations to share insights, highlight emerging initiatives, and explore practical strategies for strengthening health and well-being in communities.

Program highlights include keynote presentations on diabetes prevention, population health, and community learning, as well as panel discussions on sustainability, scaling, AI, data, and the future of health planning. The summit will also feature Catalyst Grants symposia, research presentations, poster sessions, workshops, and opportunities for continued conversation and cross-sector learning.

Download Detailed Program

Summit Objectives

The NHP Discovery Summit aims to:

Showcase innovative community-based health initiatives that are improving health and well-being across Peel Region.
Explore how partnerships among communities, researchers, healthcare providers, and policymakers can strengthen the impact, sustainability, and scalability of local health programs.
Share emerging research, promising practices, and current and future initiatives supported by the Network.
Foster collaboration, networking, and cross-sector learning to advance community health and health equity.

Agenda

Day 1: Wednesday, June 17

Time	Item
8:30am - 9:00am	Registration and Breakfast
9:00am - 9:15am	Traditional Opening Stephanie Hashie
9:15am – 9:30am	Welcoming Remarks: Vision, Progress and Opportunities Dr. Lorraine Lipscombe
9:30am - 10:30am	Keynote: The Evolving Science and Epidemiology of Diabetes: Implications for Prevention Dr. Mohammed K. Ali
10:30am - 11:15am	Catalyst Grants Symposium 1: Advancing Diabetes Prevention in Peel: Community-Driven and Culturally Tailored Strategies
11:15am - 11:30am	Break & Posters
11:30am - 12:00pm	Presentation: MOSAIC-T2D: A Precision Participatory and Multi-Level Approach for Understanding and Preventing Type 2 Diabetes Inequities Dr. Laura C. Rosella
12:00pm - 12:45pm	Lunch
12:45pm – 1:45pm	Panel: Health Beyond the Pilot: A Conversation about Sustainability, Measurement and Scaling Dr. Mohammed K. Ali, Jo Jewell, Dr. Aisha K. Lofters and Amanda O’Rourke
1:45pm – 2:00pm	Break & Posters
2:00pm – 2:45pm	Catalyst Grants Symposium 2: Growing Equity: Nutrition Education Projects and Community Garden Projects as Tools for Health Impact	Workshop A: Shaping the Future of the NHP Catalyst Grant Program
2:45pm – 3:00pm	Break & Posters
3:00pm – 3:45pm	Catalyst Grants Symposium 3: Equity in Action: Tailoring Care and Health Education for Aging and Underserved Populations	Workshop A: Shaping the Future of the NHP Catalyst Grant Program (Continued)
3:45pm - 4:00pm	Closing Remarks, Evaluation

Day 2: Thursday, June 18

Time	Item
8:45am - 9:15am	Registration and Breakfast
9:15am - 9:30am	Welcoming Remarks Dr. Lorraine Lipscombe
9:30am - 10:30am	Keynote: The Promise of Learning Together: Mississauga’s Journey Jo Jewell, Rob Trewartha and Karen Gomez
10:30am - 11:05am	Presentation: Prevention Across the Life Course: Building Healthier Futures in Peel Region Paul Sharma and Greg Kujbida
11:05am - 11:15am	Break & Posters
11:15am - 11:45am	Presentation: Ontario Health’s Diabetes Strategic Initiatives: Current State and Future Opportunities Ryan Emond
11:45am – 12:15pm	Catalyst Grants Symposium 4: Navigating Better Care: Innovation in Diabetes Screening, Pathways, and Community Support
12:15pm – 1:00pm	Lunch
1:00pm – 1:45pm	Panel: Evidence at Scale: AI, Data and the Future of Health Planning Dr. Astrid Guttmann, Dr. Muhammad Mamdani, Dr. Laura C. Rosella and Mehdi Somji
1:45pm – 2:00pm	Break & Posters
2:00pm – 2:45pm	Presentation: Growing Healthy Places: Mississauga – Why Schools are the Foundation for Belonging, Well-Being, and Community Health Tammy Shubat	Workshop B: Shaping the Future of the NHP Catalyst Grant Program	Catalyst Grants Symposium 5: Co-Creating Knowledge: Innovative Tools for Community-Led Health Impact	Continued Conversations: Student/Early Career Researchers
2:45pm – 3:00pm	Break
3:00pm – 3:45pm	Presentation: Relational Ethics and Community-based Participatory Health Research: Partnerships, Tensions and Lessons Learned from The Family and Child Health Initiative (FCHI) Dr. Dianne Fierheller, Dr. Ian Zenlea, Gabrielle Griffith, Jamaul Taylor and Angela Carter	Workshop B: Shaping the Future of the NHP Catalyst Grant Program (Continued)	Presentations: Shaping Healthier Futures: Student Research and Innovation Showcase	Continued Conversations: Community Partners
3:45pm - 4:00pm	Closing Remarks, Evaluation

For the full detailed program, including session descriptions and speaker bios, download the complete program.

Download Detailed Program

Transportation and Parking Information

Guests are encouraged to use public transit where possible. Limited on-site parking is available at the Delta Hotels by Marriott Toronto Mississauga. Additional off-site parking is available nearby; please follow posted “P” signage for alternate parking options.

The venue is accessible via public transit:

From downtown Toronto, take the TTC subway (Line 1 – Yonge-University) to Kipling Station.

From Kipling Station, transfer to MiWay (Mississauga Transit) buses heading toward Square One (e.g., routes such as the 26 Burnhamthorpe or 109 Meadowvale Express).

Disembark at Square One Terminal, which is a short walking distance from the Delta Hotels by Marriott Toronto Mississauga.

Guests traveling from other areas may also connect via GO Transit or local MiWay routes to Square One. Please allow extra travel time during peak hours.

If you have any questions about this event, please contact the Network's assistant, Lydia Henderson, at director.novonordiskhp@utoronto.ca.