The call for exchange session proposals has closed and we are no longer accepting proposals. If you have questions about the status of your proposal, please email us.

Your session must be limited to a maximum of three presenters. Each presenter will receive full-access admission to the three-day Symposium and is responsible for arranging and paying for their own travel and lodging. If there are barriers to travel or lodging, please email us.

Please note: We strive for a broad array of voices and perspectives. In service to this commitment, participation in the Symposium will be capped at four attendees per organization.

2023 Colorado Health Symposium: People-Powered Transformation

Many of the systems in the U.S. that were created to support health and well-being tend to benefit those with the most political and economic power. These systems – built and maintained by individuals with the most privilege – leave health out of reach for those of us who have historically lacked institutional power and disproportionately harm people of color.

Yet there is hope. Change is possible, and it is our duty to make real change happen. We can and must build and use our power – individual and collective – to advance health equity and build systems that work for the many rather than the few.

This year’s Colorado Health Symposium focuses on building up and harnessing people-power to generate positive change and bring health within reach for all Coloradans. 

About Exchange Sessions | What We’re Looking For

Colorado Health Symposium exchange sessions are interactive breakout sessions that take place in person during the Symposium. The goal of these sessions is to provide participants with actionable insights into how individuals and organizations across Colorado are using their power to advance health equity. An ideal proposal will present clear learning objectives, demonstrate cultural competency and connect to the Symposium’s theme (People-Powered Transformation) and goals.

Tips for Your Proposal

• Topics might include:
  • How to use individual or collective power to dismantle and then rebuild racist/oppressive systems
  • Innovative approaches and community-identified solutions that create equitable opportunities for health
  • How to make policies, practices and systems more equitable
  • How policies, practices and systems intersect with community-identified solutions
  • Intersectional approaches to health and well-being
  • Cultural approaches to health and well-being
  • Addressing cultural or regional barriers to health
  • Understanding trauma and building resilience in communities

• Audience: Fifteen to 75 individuals typically attend an exchange session. Generally, attendees are interested in and/or working to advance health equity by prioritizing racial justice. This includes community and grassroots leaders, nonprofit and funding entities, policy advocates, state agencies, and city and county government officials.
• Format: Be creative and consider how to make your session interactive for attendees. Consider the many factors impacting health, including systems of power and structural biases that deepen racial injustices and health inequities. Contribute to positive narratives about communities and offer examples of community-identified/community-led solutions that exist to bring health in reach. Formats including, but not limited to, skill-building workshops, guided discussions, fishbowls, interviews, storytelling, film screenings, hands-on art projects and demonstrations are welcome. Interpretation services, as well as a screen and projection, will be provided. Note: Panel- and lecture-style proposals will not be selected, nor will sessions featuring presenters not connected or accountable to Colorado communities.
• Symposium Goals: Exchange sessions must align with these goals: 1) Starting from the premise that people-power is innately within each of us, highlight how individual and collective power can be used to influence and engineer a new, healthier and more equitable normal with racial justice at its center. 2) Provide a platform to aid connection and understanding across sectors, power structures, lived experiences and identities. 3) Inspire hope and action to advance health equity. 4) Demonstrate respect for community-level solutions and cultural modes of solutioning and healing while also addressing the barriers of systemic and structural oppression at large. What have communities been able to do despite policy and structural barriers? 
• Timing: Exchange sessions take place throughout the three-day Symposium. If your proposal is accepted, you will be informed of your session time as the Symposium nears. Specific session times vary depending on the proposed format (either 60 or 90 minutes in duration).

Translation Services, Technical Assistance and Questions

If you require language translation or technical assistance to complete or submit your proposal, or have questions about exchange sessions and your proposal, please email us with your name and preferred language, technical issue or question, and a member of our team will contact you within 24 business hours.