International Conferences on Health Promotion: Evolution, Conceptual Inflections, and Contemporary Challenges for the Global Agenda

Izaltina Adão; Claudia Flemming Colussi; Dais Gonçalves Rocha

doi:10.5020/18061230.2026.17033

Authors

Izaltina Adão Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5721-2560
Claudia Flemming Colussi Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3395-9125
Dais Gonçalves Rocha University of Brasília, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1103-5930

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5020/18061230.2026.17033

Keywords:

Health Promotion, Health Conferences, Public Policies, Health Equity, Social Determinants of Health, Global Health

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the evolution of the themes and contributions of the International Conferences on Health Promotion from 1986 to 2021, identifying their major advances, conceptual shifts, and contemporary challenges for the consolidation of Health Promotion worldwide. Method: A qualitative narrative review based on the documentary analysis of official declarations, charters, and reports issued by the International Conferences on Health Promotion, complemented by scientific literature indexed in SciELO, LILACS, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Documents published between 1986 and 2023 in Portuguese, English, and Spanish were included. Data were analyzed through thematic categorization, guided by the identification of analytical axes over time. Results: Declarations from ten International Conferences and five regional and thematic conferences on Health Promotion were analyzed. The findings revealed a trajectory of progressive expansion in the scope of Health Promotion, marked by a shift from lifestyle-centered approaches toward structural perspectives incorporating social determinants, equity, sustainability, and global governance. Major advances included the institutionalization of the concept, the consolidation of intersectoral action, and the incorporation of the Health in All Policies approach. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain, particularly regarding implementation, structural inequalities, and the influence of economic and commercial determinants of health. Conclusion: The conferences represent key normative and political milestones that have contributed substantially to the consolidation of a global Health Promotion agenda. Despite important conceptual and policy advances, their effectiveness depends on the capacity to translate global recommendations into locally grounded practices, requiring stronger institutional frameworks, intersectoral governance, and a sustained commitment to equity.

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Translation

This article is a translation in English of the article: Conferências Internacionais sobre Promoção da Saúde: Evolução, Inflexões Conceituais e Desafios Contemporâneos para a Agenda Global

Author Biographies

Izaltina Adão, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil

PhD in Public Health from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC). Holds a Master’s degree in Health Management from Fundação Getulio Vargas, São Paulo (2018), and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina (2007). Serves as an evaluator and researcher for the Specialization Programs in Family and Community Medicine conducted within the framework of the Doctors for Brazil Program and the More Doctors for Brazil Project through the Open University of the Unified Health System (UNA-SUS/Fiocruz). Member of the Executive Coordination Committee of the Thematic Group on Health Promotion and Sustainable Development of the Brazilian Association of Collective Health (ABRASCO) for the 2024–2025 and 2026–2027 terms. Member of ABRASCO’s Thematic Group on Health Evaluation. Researcher affiliated with the Nursing Research and Health Promotion Laboratory (LAPEPS), the Occupational Health Research and Extension Laboratory (LASAT), and the Health Evaluation Research and Extension Center (NEPAS) at UFSC. Volunteer Professor in the Department of Public Health at UFSC. Guest Lecturer in the Integrated Multiprofessional Health Residency Program (RIMS) at the UFSC University Hospital, teaching Health Management and Planning. Member of a multicenter research project focused on developing methodologies for the formulation of state-level Health Promotion policies and supporting their implementation in Brazilian states, funded by the Ministry of Health and the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq). Reviewer for Cadernos de Saúde Pública, Physis: Revista de Saúde Coletiva, and O Mundo da Saúde. Technical vocabulary reviewer for the ABRASCO Public Health Editors Forum. Member of the organizing, scientific, and communications committees of the Latin American Meeting on Monitoring and Evaluation in Health Promotion.

Claudia Flemming Colussi, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil

DDS from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (1998), Master’s degree in Public Health from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (2003), and PhD in Dental Public Health from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (2010). Associate Professor in the Department of Public Health at the Federal University of Santa Catarina and member of the Health Evaluation Research and Extension Center (NEPAS). Faculty member of the Graduate Program in Public Health at the Federal University of Santa Catarina.

Dais Gonçalves Rocha , University of Brasília, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil

DDS from the Federal University of Goiás (1990), Master's degree (1997), and PhD (2001) in Public Health from the School of Public Health at the University of São Paulo. Completed a postdoctoral fellowship in 2014 at the University of British Columbia, School of Population and Public Health, Vancouver, Canada, and a second postdoctoral fellowship in 2023 at the Faculty of Medicine of the Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, Brazil. Associate Professor in the Department of Collective Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Brasília.