Think Tank and Open Forum

The Alliance for Oral Health Across Think Tank and Open Forum seeks to cultivate a cutting edge community interested in sharing ideas and innovation. We hope to show this diverse group with overlapping missions that their connection to the Alliance for Oral Health Across Borders expands their capacity.

Upcoming Think Tank & Open Forum:

Past Think Tank Discussions:

WHO 2021 Oral Health Resolution:
Putting Oral Health Back on the Global Agenda

Continuing in our goal of creating Think Tank and Open Forum sessions that create visibility around global health related issues, we are planning in our next event to focus on the World Health Organization (WHO) Oral Health Resolution which just passed.  Our Keynote speaker, Dr. Benoit Varenne, Chief Dental Officer of the WHO, joins us in keeping up the momentum of enthusiasm and spreading the messaging to a wider audience.

Since FDI World Dental Federation and The International Association for Dental Research (IADR) are the official nonstate associations in a relationship with the Oral Health Program of the WHO, we have invited a representative from each to react to Dr. Benoit Vareen’s presentation and answer questions in our open forum. The representative from The International Association for Dental Research (IADR) will be Executive Director, Dr. Chris Fox and from World Dental Federation (FDI), the representative will be Executive Director, Enzo Bondioni.

The program is moderated by:
Dr. Deborah Weisfuse, President of The Alliance for Oral Health Across Borders

For those of you who may have missed this program, or if you would like to recommend friends and colleagues, the most recent Think Tank and Open Forum with Dr. Benoit Varenne (WHO), Dr. Christopher Fox (IADR) and Mr. Enzo Bondioni (FDI) is now available to watch on-demand and to obtain your CE credit. Create your account with our partner Penn Dental Medicine and register to access this important program.

“Hoping to Help”
Controversies in Global Health Volunteerism

Guest Presenter: Dr. Judith Lasker
Moderator: Dr. Deborah Weisfuse
Discussion Q&A: Alliance Attendees

Dr. Judith N. Lasker is the author of Hoping to Help; The Promises and Pitfalls of Global Health Volunteering (Cornell U. Press, 2016), which examines the impact on host communities and on volunteers of short-term international programs in health. She has spoken about her research to audiences globally. 

Dr. Lasker is co-founder of Advocacy for Global Health Partnerships, a coalition of leaders from all sectors involved in global health programs–—NGO’s, faith-based organizations, academia, governmental groups and corporations– who advocate for research-based standards for more effective and ethical practices. Dr. Lasker, is also creator of the “Brocher Declaration” which is a result of her years of research into the topic of “Improving the value of short term clinical programs in global health”. This declaration is a statement of ethical principles for guiding policy on short-term global health engagements and is supported by many organizations globally.

Dr. Lasker is Professor Emerita of Sociology and Health Medicine and Society, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA, USA. She earned her B.A. at Brandeis and her M.A. and Ph.D. at Harvard. Judith’s major areas of interest are in the field of medical sociology, with particular emphasis on women’s health issues and international health.

In 2014, Judith was awarded the Centennial Medal by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Harvard for “contributions to society as they have emerged from one’s graduate education at Harvard.”

Click video below to view on demand “Hoping to Help” Think Tank.

Think Tank Committee:
Judy Bendit, RDH
Dr. Lois Cohen
Dr. Callum Durward
Dr. Leslie Grant
Dr. Regina Mutave
Dr. Mahesh Verma
Dr. Deborah Weisfuse
Dr. Mark Wolff

Program support for this initiative has been provided by the Dr. Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund.