Recap APH Annual Meeting 2025 on 'Sustainability in Public Health'

On November 25, 2025, Amsterdam Public Health hosted its 9th Annual Meeting, themed ‘Sustainability in Public Health’. With more than 300 participants, we explored how to strengthen sustainability in public health.

Plenary morning session

The day was opened by APH director Cécile Boot. We kicked off with an inspiring keynote by ‘professional problem solver’ Babette Porcelijn, founder and director of the Think Big Act Now foundation. Babette challenged us to discover the hidden blind spots in our thinking about sustainability and provided practical action perspectives to make a real impact for both people and planet.

This was followed by a duo-keynote from dr. Niek Sperna Weiland and prof. dr. Wouter Hehenkamp, who navigated between hope and fear/opportunity in climate change. They highlighted the urgent threats and the unprecedented opportunities for innovation and collaboration, offering practical tools to help everyone contribute to addressing the climate crisis. Special attention was given to the new position paper “Sustainability in Research”, providing guidance on making research practices more sustainable.

The plenary morning session was closed by keynote speaker dr. Lieke Boonen, deputy director of Pharos, who shared sustainable strategies to reduce health inequalities. Through practical examples and a clear call to action, she inspired us to build a healthier, more equitable, and sustainable society for all.

Walking lunch break

During the lunch break, participants joined engaging poster presentations, networked with fellow APH researchers, and attended the creative ‘Arts in Science’ session. This unique activity brought together art and science, allowing participants to experience and create collaborative artworks on themes related to sustainability and public health.

Parallel theme sessions

In the afternoon, the APH research programs hosted a variety of parallel sessions:

Climate change, green environment, and health
Contemporary public health challenges from a complexity perspective
Digital sustainability: the hidden impact of data and methods
College Tour: Aging in place through the eyes of older people
Sustainability as method: Embedding environmental awareness, reflexivity, and equity in research practices
Coloring connections: Researching gender, intersectionality, and health in the climate crisis
What about our own (mental) health and wellbeing? (How) Do we practice what we preach?

A recap of these sessions can be found on the Recap parallel theme sessions APH Annual Meeting 2025.

APH Poster presentations and award winners

PhD candidates, junior researchers, and postdocs presented their research projects during the poster sessions. All submitted abstracts were reviewed on scientific and societal relevance, and the best posters competed for the APH Poster Award 2025. The award included a €500 voucher for the winner and €250 vouchers for the two shared second-place winners. The awards were presented by vice-directors Jeroen Lakerveld and Frank van Leth.

Winner: Nikita Hensen

Second places: Mohammad Azizmalayeri & Sigsten Stieglitz

APH Impact Booster grant winners

APH awarded 6 Sustainability Booster Grants, each with a value of up to €5,000, to encourage sustainable research practices within APH. The winners were selected during the plenary closing ceremony by random selection.

The 6 winners:

Annelinde Lettink - From observation to scale: Labelled data for inclusive 24-hr movement behaviour monitoring in early childhood
Emma Twait - Building sustainable bridges at the European Public Health conference
Alannah Hijlkema - Tailored communication for individuals with genetic disorders and/or intellectual disabilities
Elmi Zwaan - Empowering occupational health professionals for sustainable return-to-work practice
Fleur Heuvelman - Transforming transport for all: Policy solutions for fair and green mobility
Dorinde Korteling - Sustainable measurement of pediatric mobility and upper extremity

Closing

The day concluded with the award ceremonies for the Poster Awards and Sustainability Booster Grants, a visual overview of the day created by APH researcher Donna Beerda, an inspiring artistic performance by the Sand Wizard, and networking drinks. The APH Annual Meeting 2025 was an energizing and successful event, highlighting the importance of sustainability in public health from a variety of inspiring perspectives. Thank you all for your contributions and commitment!