The University of Guelph will host the 37th annual Guelph Sexuality Conference, Canada’s largest and longest-running sexual health forum, June 18 to 19.
The event will bring together more than 200 researchers, health-care workers, therapists, students, social workers and other health professionals from across North America.
Co-chairs Ruth Neustifter and Robin Milhausen, faculty members in the Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition (FRAN), say they are excited about the conference theme, “Bodies: Resistance, Liberation, Health and Pleasure.”
“In the past, the conference has focused more on psychosocial aspects of sexual health, and we’re glad to have a year where we remind ourselves and attendees that sexuality is an embodied experience,” Neustifter said.
“To us, this means keeping in mind the ways the body can shape the mind, and how important bodily experiences of pleasure and health are to our well-being. It’s very exciting to be able to meet and learn from experts around the country and internationally, right here in Guelph.”
Plenary speakers will address body image, beauty culture and gender transition, and a panel will explore everything from aging to self-harm to sexuality to parenting.
Workshops held both days will address topics from gender and sexual identity to HPV vaccination campaigns to sexual consent and childhood sexual abuse.
“One highlight is a presentation about the human development and sexual health topics within the revised Ontario health and physical education curriculum — a presentation that will be of interest to parents and educators alike,” Milhausen said.
Information and registration details, and a complete listing of conference sessions, are available online.
The Guelph Sexuality Conference is open only to registrants and the media (some sessions are closed to media). For more information or to obtain media passes, email sexconf@OpenEd.uoguelph.ca.
The event is sponsored by FRAN and U of G’s Office of Open Learning and Educational Support.