DESCRIPTION:
Promoting and implementing healthy public policies (HPPs) is a key health promotion strategy to improve population health and health equity by addressing the social determinants of health (SDH). Because these determinants are shaped by decisions made across many sectors, advancing healthy public policy requires collaboration well beyond the health system. Intersectoral action approaches, such as Health in All Policies (HiAP), support this collaboration by integrating health and equity considerations into decision -making across sectors.
In this context, advancing collective action on the SDH requires engaging partners who do not necessarily share the same perspectives, language, priorities, or mandates. This calls for improving how we communicate about the SDH in ways that increase understanding of why they matter and foster support for policy change. To help address this challenge, the NCCHPP partnered with FrameWorks UK to explore how framing can strengthen public health communication and support more effective cross-sector engagement.
This webinar introduced the concept of framing, explained why it matters, and explore how people think about health and the social determinants of health. Participants were then introduced to the Building Blocks of Health metaphor, developed by FrameWorks UK and The Health Foundation in the UK, as a practical framing strategy to communicate more effectively and increase one’s understanding of how the wider determinants of health shape a healthy society. The webinar concluded with recommendations for telling your story and practical examples of how these approaches can be applied in public health practice. The webinar was held on September 17, 2026.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
By the end of the webinar, participants were able to:
- Explain why framing matters for communicating about the social determinants of health (SDH) and engaging partners across sectors.
- Describe how common ways of thinking about health can influence understanding of the SDH and support for policy change.
- Describe how the Building Blocks of Health metaphor and other framing recommendations can strengthen communication about the SDH in the Canadian public health context.
TARGET AUDIENCE:
This webinar was intended for public health professionals, managers, decision makers, and researchers, as well as their partners working in other sectors that influence the determinants of health.
Webinar Recording
PPT Presentation
70 slides
Additional Resources
FrameWorks UK
To access all the resources on the Building Blocks of Health, visit the Building Blocks of Health hub: https://frameworksuk.org/building-blocks-of-health-hub/
FrameWorks UK offers resources on different themes and policy issues: https://frameworksuk.org/resources/
Canadian Council on Social Determinants of Health
This document, from the Canadian Council on Social Determinants of Health, offers guidance for crafting clear, impactful messages that can build a broader understanding of health in Canada among diverse audiences:
Canadian Council on Social Determinants of Health. (2013). Communicating the social determinants of health: Guidelines for common messaging. Ottawa, ON: Canadian Council on Social Determinants of Health (available on the website of the NCCDH).
The National Collaborating Centre for Determinants of Health (NCCDH)
Our sister centre, the NCCDH, has many resources to support public health action on the structural and social determinants of health. Resources relevant to this webinar include:
Let’s Talk: Determinants of Health, which uses a tree metaphor to explore influences on health,
and
A different kind of health equity: Creating conditions for action on the structural determinants of health, which recommends several action areas for public health, including “work together to share evidence, stories and solutions.”
SPEAKER:
Maria Castellina
Director of Impact
FrameWorks UK
Maria Castellina is Director of Impact at FrameWorks UK, supporting partners to utilise FrameWorks innovative framing research in order to change hearts and minds and build a better world. She is the author of the Building Blocks of Health research and resources and leads FrameWorks health communications work. Maria has spent her career finding the right words to persuade, influence and inspire social and political change. With over fifteen years’ experience leading communications campaigns in the UK not-for-profit sector, Maria has worked across a broad range of issues including domestic violence, climate, health, and access to nature.
FACILITATOR:
Natalia Carrillo Botero
Scientific Advisor
National Collaborating Centre for Healthy Public Policy
Natalia holds a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from the University of the Andes (Colombia) and a master’s degree in sociology from Université Sorbonne Nouvelle – Paris 3. After working in different organizations on global health and health promotion, she joined the NCCHPP in 2022. At the NCCHPP, she works on the Health in All Policies project and acts as the coordinator of the Canadian Network for Health in All Policies Secretariat.