Save the Date
Join us for the 5th Annual Health Equity Summit
September 24–25, 2026
UVM Davis Center + Online
Stay tuned for announcements about the 2026 Call for Proposals, registration and other Summit updates.
Post-Event Update
Relive the Day
Recordings from the Health Equity Summit are now available. You can watch them any time using the link below:
CMIE Credit Information
- Deadline to Claim Credits: November 23, 2025.
- CMIE credit is available for sessions held on Friday, October 24, 2025.
- Participants earn credit per session attended, with up to 6.5 CMIE credits possible.
How to Claim Your Credits
View Step-by-Step Instructions for CMIE Login
For questions or technical support, contact the UVM Office of Continuing Medical and Interprofessional Education at UVMCMIE@med.uvm.edu.
What an Incredible Gathering!
Thank you to everyone who joined us — both in person and online — for the 4th Annual Health Equity Summit! Over two powerful days, we didn’t just convene, we connected, reflected and reimagined what equity looks like when it’s lived, not just learned. This year’s Summit was more than an event, it was a step towards building a more inclusive, community-rooted future.
When our Planning Committee first came together in early 2025, we envisioned a Summit made by the community, for the community — a space where lived experience is honored alongside expertise and being present matters as much as presenting.
This vision came to life in a powerful and measurable way. We received a record-breaking 154 abstract submissions from 19 states across the U.S., signaling a growing national interest in community-driven equity work. Notably, New York doubled its participation with 13 submissions.
The exhibitor section featured 13 community organizations both in-person and virtually, each bringing forward local solutions and expertise. Pheonix Books curated a special collection of titles aligned with the Summit themes, offering attendees a chance to deepen their engagement beyond the sessions (link). The exhibition also showcased the full suite of poster presentations, extending visibility well beyond the traditional Summit timeframe.
Our newly launched online platform welcomed 4,818 visitors, dramatically expanding the Summit’s reach beyond Vermont. This digital access point proved especially vital for rural
communities, where geographic barriers often limit participation in equity-centered conversations.
The Summit ultimately convened a vibrant, intentional and truly diverse community — one that reflected the many voices, stories and aspirations shaping our collective pursuit of equity. As we look ahead, we remain committed to growing this space, amplifying underrepresented experiences and ensuring that equity is not just a theme, but a practice embedded in how we gather, learn and lead.
View the Program
See the complete schedule and session lineup for the 2025 Health Equity Summit. Access the full program
Summit Overview
The Health Equity Summit is a collaborative space for health care professionals, community leaders, researchers, advocates and change-makers to come together in pursuit of a more just and equitable future. This Summit is built to spark bold conversations, uplift underrepresented voices and drive actionable strategies that transform how we understand and achieve health equity across our communities.
Through interactive sessions, expert panels and storytelling, we examine the root causes of health disparities and explore collaborative solutions. We work together to advance equity — the fair and just opportunity for everyone to achieve their highest level of health — across clinical care, policy, education and community systems.
This year's Summit arrives at a critical time, and we are honored to welcome keynote speaker Loretta J. Ross, whose message of empathy, shared values and ‘calling in’ is both inspiring and essential.
Program Highlights
October 23: Food & Mood - A Culinary Medicine Experience
Discover how nourishment can be a pathway to healing, connection, and joy. Food & Mood is more than a workshop — it’s a sensory-rich experience designed to explore the powerful relationship between what we eat and how we feel. Through hands-on activities, mindful practices, and shared meals, you’ll learn simple, meaningful ways to support mental wellness through food. Whether you're a caregiver, clinician, community member, or simply curious, this 90-minute journey invites you to slow down, reflect, and reconnect — with yourself, with others, and with the land.
October 24: Introducing Keynote Speakers
Keynote Speakers
Calling In: Navigating Challenging Conversations and Cultivating Compassionate Connections
Loretta J. Ross is a nationally recognized activist, public intellectual and 2022 MacArthur “Genius” Fellow whose work spans five decades of leadership in human rights, reproductive justice and anti-racism. As Associate Professor at Smith College, she brings deep wisdom and bold imagination to the classroom and beyond.
Her keynote invites us to reframe how we engage across differences — challenging cancel culture and offering a path toward empathy, accountability and healing through her groundbreaking work, Calling In the Calling Out Culture. Loretta’s journey — from leading the first rape crisis center in the U.S. to being inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame — reflects a lifelong commitment to justice, care and collective liberation.
With clarity, courage and compassion, Loretta calls us to build communities where truth is spoken, dignity is honored and everyone has a seat at the table.
Stories as Medicine: A Storyteller’s Call to Health Equity
Ferene Paris is a Black Haitian femme storyteller and artist who creates heart-centered spaces through live performance, workshops and community engagement. As founder of All Heart Inspirations, she has curated over 200 offerings that center culture, connection and courageous truth-telling — making lasting impact across Vermont and beyond.
Her keynote invites us into a raw, reflective journey through her lived experience, exploring how race, gender, class and systemic inequities shape our health and humanity. Through story as medicine, Ferene challenges us to reimagine the spaces where we work, gather and heal — anchored in care, equity and belonging.
Topics We Explored This Year
This year's Summit featured dynamic conversations at the intersection of health equity, community engagement and empowerment, cultural humility and systemic and policy change. Together, we explored:
- Inclusive and Culturally Responsive Care: Addressing racial disparities, supporting LGBTQIA+ and neurodiverse communities, and elevating immigrant, refugee and BIPOC voices in health care.
- Community-Led Innovation and Empowerment: Highlighting grassroots initiatives like doula programs, menstrual equity, health literacy and mentoring that drive local impact.
- Transforming Systems and Policy: Reimagining child protective services, specialty care, integrating internationally trained professionals and using data to inform equitable healthcare policy.
- Centering Lived Expertise and Storytelling: Uplifting youth, families, and patients through participatory research, personal narratives and creative expressions of health and healing.
- Provider Wellness and Workforce Development: Supporting caregivers, navigating complex care and fostering resilience in a changing health care landscape.
- Equity Across the Lifespan: From perinatal substance use to aging and palliative care, we’ll explore strategies for inclusive care at every stage of life.
- Environmental and Digital Equity: Bridging the digital divide, advancing environmental health and ensuring access to care in rural and underserved communities.
Sponsored By
UVM Medical Center Auxiliary
Presented By
Open to All | Donations Welcome
The Health Equity Summit is open to everyone committed to advancing equity in health care. While hosting this event requires significant resources, we are committed to ensuring that cost is not a barrier to participation. That is why we offer the Summit at no charge to attendees.
Past participants have included:
- Community members
- Nonprofit organizations
- Students
- Medical staff, clinicians and health care professionals
- Policymakers
- Academic faculty and staff
By creating a space that is open and accessible, we aim to foster connection, learning and collaboration across all sectors. Donations and sponsorships help cover essential costs such as accessibility services, speaker honoraria and community participation support. These contributions ensure that the Summit can continue to be offered at no cost to all participants in the future.