Bridging the Humanitarian, Peacebuilding, and Development Nexus: Building Systems for Mental Health & Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) for Populations Affected by War, Forced Displacement, and Resettlement through an Implementation Science Lens

Tuesday to Wednesday | May 7-8, 2024 | Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland

Trinity

The Boston College School of Social Work Research Program on Children & Adversity (RPCA) and the Trinity College Dublin Centre for Forced Migration Studies are pleased to announce our upcoming symposium, titled Bridging the Humanitarian, Peacebuilding, and Development Nexus: Building Systems for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) for Populations Affected by War, Forced Displacement, and Resettlement through an Implementation Science Lens, on the 7-8 of May 2024 in Dublin, Ireland. 

The two day in-person symposium will discuss the role of implementation science in bridging the humanitarian-peacebuilding-development gap in regions affected by conflict and violence. Improving mental health in conflict-affected settings is a major global health challenge. Attaining the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in fragile conflict-affected regions will require multi-sectoral coordination bridging humanitarian-peacebuilding-development efforts. We are inviting scholars,international development actors (USAID, GIZ), humanitarian agencies (UNHCR, UNICEF) to join us in an important dialogue.

The symposium will feature keynote speakers Drs. Wietse A. Tol and Mary McKay from University of Copenhagen and Washington University at St. Louis, highlighting their work on multi-sectoral integration interventions and implementation science perspectives on peacebuilding in post-conflict settings. In addition, the event will feature panel discussions and collaborative conversations with community members, students, and researchers on varied topics related to building systems to support those who have experienced adversity and conflict. This event will bring together panelists from multiple organizations and disciplines, including Boston College and Trinity College Dublin faculty and students.

The panels will be based on the following themes: implementation science and scaling globally, bridging the gap between humanitarian response and building systems in communities affected by war and violence, peacebuilding and preventing intergenerational cycles of violence, the problem of the relief to development gap, and a lived experience and participatory research panel. The panel-based symposium will allow for collaborations across disciplines and further existing partnerships and collaborations between Boston College and Trinity College Dublin to expand and strengthen a network of global experts in family, conflict, and child development. This collaboration between Boston College and Trinity College Dublin facilitates avenues for greater collaboration between students and faculty across both institutions.

Schedule and Registration

Tuesday | May 7, 2024 | TRINITY LONG ROOM

Hybrid event. The schedule for the event is as follows (please note all times indicated are in Irish Summer Time five hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time). Register to attend virtually !

11:00-11:15 AM

Opening Remarks 

Rachel M. Hoare, Professor and Director, Centre of Forced Migration Studies, Trinity College

Theresa S. Betancourt, Professor and Director, Research Program on Children and Adversity, Boston College School of Social Work

Gautam N. Yadama, Dean and Professor, Boston College School of Social Work

11:15 AM-12:00 PM

Keynote Day 1: “Multi-Sectoral Integrated Interventions”

Wietse A. Tol, Professor, University of Copenhagen

12:00-12:45 PM

The Problem of the Relief to Development Gap: Panel 1

Moderators
Ganzamungu Zihindula, Research Scientist, Trinity College
Barbara Kozee, Student Fellow, Boston College 

Panelists
Ann Willhoite, Mental Health & Psychosocial Support Team Lead, UNICEF
Josiah Kaplan, Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF Innocenti Office of Research
Ann Nolan, Professor, Trinity College
Ghaiath Hussein, Professor, Trinity College
Adeyinka M. Akinsulure-Smith, Professor, City University of New York

12:45-1:30 PM

Breakout Discussions

Facilitators
Ngozi Enelamah, Professor, University of New HampshireThomas Crea, Professor and Assistant Dean, Boston College School of Social Work
1:30-2:45 PM

LUNCHEON AND BREAK

2:45-3:30 PM

Bridging the Gap: How Can the Humanitarian Response Set Up Possibilities of Future MPHSS Systems Being Built?: Panel 2

Moderators
Sarah Quinn, Academic Staff, Trinity College
Zina Aghdasi, Student Fellow, Boston College 

Panelists
Pieter Ventevogel, Senior Mental Health & Psychosocial Support Officer, UNHCR
Alena Mehlau, Project Lead, GIZ
William Byansi, Professor, Boston College School of Social Work
Bronagh Ćatibušić, Professor, Trinity College
Felicity Brown, MHPSS Intervention Development and Evaluation Specialist, UNICEF

3:30-4:15 PM

Breakout Discussion Groups 

Facilitator
Alena Mehlau, Project Lead, GIZ
4:15-4:45 PM

Closing Remarks

Theresa S. Betancourt, Salem Professor in Global Practice, Director, RPCA, Boston College School of Social Work 

Rina Ghafoerkhan, Editor in Chief, Intervention Journal/Senior MHPSS Technical Advisor, ARQ Internation


Wednesday | May 8, 2024 | TRINITY LONG ROOM

11:00-11:15 AM

Day 2 Opening Remarks

Rachel M. Hoare, Professor and Director, Centre for Forced Migration Studies, Trinity College

11:15 AM-12:00 PM

Keynote Day 2:  “Implementation Science and Peacebuilding in Post-Conflict Settings”

Mary M. McKay, Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives, Washington University St. Louis

12:00-12:45

Lived Experience & Participatory Research Approaches: Panel 3

Moderators
Gillian Wylie, Head of School and Professor, Trinity College
Ganzamungu Zihindula, Research Scientist, Trinity College

Panelists
Angelika Sharygina, Student Fellow, Trinity College
Tala Al Rousan, Professor, University of California San Diego
Samiksh Jain, Student Fellow, Boston College
Mustafa Keshkeia, Student Fellow, Dublin City University
Tania Bosqui, Professor, American University of Beirut

12:45-1:30 PM

Breakout Discussion

Facilitators
Maryanne Loughry, Faculty, Boston College School of Social Work
Tania Cañas, Fellow, Trinity College
1:30-2:45 PM

LUNCHEON AND BREAK

2:45-3:30 PM

IMPLEMENTATION SCIENCE AND SCALING GLOBALLY: Panel 4

Moderators
Frédérique Vallières, Professor, Trinity College
Megan Taylor, Student Fellow, Boston College

Panelists
María Fernanda Piñeros-Leaño, Professor, Boston College School of Social Work
Eve Puffer, Professor, Duke University 
Gregory Aarons, Professor and Director, Child and Adolescent Services Research Center, University of California San Diego
Nhial T. Tutlam, Professor, Washington University in St. Louis
Theresa S. Betancourt, Professor and Director, Research Program on Children and Adversity, Boston College School of Social Work

3:30-4:15 PM

Breakout Discussion

Facilitators
Candace Black, Research Scientist, Research Program on Children and Adversity, Boston College School of Social Work
Abygail Meeks, Student Fellow, Boston College
4:15-5:00 PM

Symposium Closing Remarks

Paul H. Wise, Professor and Senior Fellow, Stanford University

Keynote Speakers

Wietse A. Tol

Dr. Wietse A. Tol

Professor in Global Mental Health, University of Copenhagen

Wietse A. Tol is Professor of Global Mental Health at the Section of Global Health, Department of Public Health at the University of Copenhagen; Endowed Professor of Global Mental Health and Structural Vulnerabilities at the VU University Amsterdam; Adjunct Professor at the Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; and Senior Advisor with HealthRight International. He holds an MA in Clinical and Health Psychology (Leiden University), a Ph.D. in Public Mental Health (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), and was a postdoctoral fellow at Yale University. He focuses on multi-sectoral, integrated interventions that address mental health and the social determinants of mental health. He is very interested in understanding how research can lead to improved practice (and vice versa). 


Mary M. McKay

Dr. Mary M. McKay

Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives, Washington University in St. Louis

Mary M. McKay is the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives at Washington University in St. Louis. In this role, she works to enhance interdisciplinary research and education across the campus and to build the collaborations needed to ensure the successful implementation of the university’s strategic plan. With over 200 publications, Dean McKay brings a wealth of critical scholarship and leadership in the areas of poverty, mental health and the health- prevention needs of poverty-impacted youth and families. Prior to joining Washington University in St. Louis, Dean McKay was the McSilver Professor of Social Work and the inaugural director of the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research at New York University's Silver School of Social Work.


Speakers

Rachel M. Hoare

Rachel M. Hoare, PhD

Professor and Director, Centre for Forced Migration Studies, Trinity College Dublin

Dr. Rachel Hoare is a lecturer in the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultural Studies in Trinity College, where she is the Director of the Centre for Forced Migration Studies and has been actively involved for a number of years with University of Sanctuary activities, including most recently, volunteer-led English conversation classes for refugees organised by her colleague Dr. Bronagh Ćatibušić and herself. Rachel is also an expressive arts psychotherapist working on a part-time basis with unaccompanied refugee minors on behalf of Tusla, the Irish Child and Family agency. Rachel’s research focuses on trauma-informed practice, the impact of friendships on the coping and resilience of refugee youth as well as the benefits of expressive arts practice. Rachel has delivered numerous training on how to work in a trauma-informed way with refugees including to the UNHCR in Dublin, the European Migration Network, government agencies, NGOs, charities, schools, libraries, youth organizations, social workers, foster carers, and other support staff. She has also delivered a public lecture on this topic as part of the Long Room Hub ‘Behind the Headlines’ series. Rachel has written in the print media about the ways in which expressive arts therapies can help to heal the trauma of refugees and she has delivered keynotes and other conference papers on this and other topics related to her research, advocacy, and clinical practice supporting refugee youth.


Rina Ghafoerkhan

Rina Ghafoerkhan, MS

Editor in Chief, Intervention Journal/Senior MHPSS Technical Advisor, ARQ International

Rina Ghafoerkhan is a psychologist, researcher, and senior MHPSS technical adviser at ARQ International. Since 2023, she has been editor in chief of Intervention, a scientific peer-reviewed journal focused on advancing MHPSS in areas of armed conflict and natural disaster. As a researcher and clinician she specializes in mental healthcare for displaced populations in the Netherlands, particularly for those who have faced (conflict-related) sexual violence and trafficking.


Paul H. Wise

Paul H. Wise, M.D., MPH

Professor and Senior Fellow, Stanford University 

Dr. Wise is the Richard E. Behrman Professor of Child Health and Society, Professor of Pediatrics and Health Policy, and Senior Fellow, the Freeman-Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University. Dr. Wise’s work bridges the fields of child health equity, public policy, and international security studies. Since July 2019, Dr. Wise has served as the Juvenile Care Monitor for the U.S. Federal Court overseeing the treatment of migrant children in U.S. detention. Since February 2022, Dr. Wise has also served as the Senior Advisor to the SAFER Ukraine initiative which, to date, has evacuated some 1,400 children with cancer from Ukraine. He has published widely and his interdisciplinary contributions have been recognized by election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.


Boston College Faculty and Supporting Staff

Gautam N. Yadama 
Theresa S. Betancourt
Thomas Crea
William Byansi
María Fernanda Piñeros-Leaño
Maryanne Loughry 
Candace J. Black 

RPCA Event Management Staff:
Rachel L. Stram, Administrative ManagerLibby (Janice) Evans, Mutual Learning ManagerJamison O’Sullivan, Administrative Assistant


Event Participants

Ann Willhoite, ڴھپDz:䷡

Josiah Kaplan, Affiliation: UNICEF Innocenti Office of Research

Ann Nolan, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin

Ghaiath Hussein, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin School of Medicine

Adeyinka M. Akinsulure-Smith, The City College of New York

Pieter Ventevogel, Affiliation: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Bronagh Ćatibušić, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin

Sarah Quinn, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin

Felicity Brown, Affiliation: UNICEF

Angelika Sharygina, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin

Tala Al Rousan, Affiliation: University of California San Diego, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health & Human Longevity Science

Tania Bosqui, Affiliation: American University of Beirut

Mustafa Keshkeia, Affiliation: Dublin City University

Eve Puffer, Affiliation: Duke University

Nhial Tutlam, Affiliation: Washington University in St. Louis Brown School

Gregory Aarons, Affiliation: University of California San Diego

Alena Mehlau, Affiliation: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

Tania Cañas, Affiliation: University of Melbourne

Frédérique Vallières, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin

Gillian Wylie, Affiliation: Trinity College Dublin School of Religion


Fellowship Winners

Five winning 51 students received a fellowship to attend the two-day symposium and have the opportunity to present on a research topic related to forced displacement and resettlement during the symposium. 

Abygail Meeks
Masters Student in School of Social Work, class of 2025

Zina Aghdasi
Doctoral Student in Connell School of Nursing, class of 2027

Barbara Kozee
Doctoral Student in Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences - Graduate, class of 2030

Megan Taylor
Doctoral Student in School of Social Work, class of 2027

Samiksh Jain
Undergraduate Student in Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences, class of 2026