7th Obesity Research Summer Bootcamp

Faithful readers will be well aware that around this time of the year, I spend well over a week at the Canadian Obesity Network’s Summer Bootcamp, which offers 24 handpicked trainees and new professionals a remarkably intense educational event dealing with all aspects relevant to obesity research – from molecular mechanisms to epidemiology, from nutrition and exercise research to medical and surgical treatments, from policy to health economics.

This camp has been a longstanding collaboration with the University of Laval (with strong input and support from the University of Alberta) and has resulted in a rather tightly knit network of over 150 young obesity professionals across Canada (and now internationally).

As anyone involved in the Canadian obesity research community is well aware, it is hard not to stumble across a former ‘Bootcamper’ at scientific meetings or (increasingly) in government, health care systems and NGOs (where many of the Bootcampers have since found employment – no surprise given that they represent the ‘best-of-the-best’ among the next generation of Canadian obesity experts).

Unfortunately, funding this rather exclusive but important initiative remains a challenge, which is why we have had to reduce the length of the camp from nine to seven days – making the program even more crowded – all of obesity is a lot of ground to cover by any standard.

I certainly look forward to another exciting week of learning and friendships – all former Bootcampers will know exactly what I am talking about.

AMS
Station touristique Duchesnay, QC