A planning committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will be appointed to organize a one-day public symposium to explore and reflect on the major developments toward prevention, treatment, and management of obesity, and how the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions has contributed to those developments. The symposium will review the history of the Roundtable, its evolution, and how it has informed research, policy, and practice. The symposium will address areas relevant to the origin and ongoing purpose of the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions, including: the role of the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions as a convening activity within the Food and Nutrition Board at the National Academies; how its emphasis on systems science and the upstream determinants of obesity has influenced its work; and the impact of its publications and activities on policy and practice.
The symposium will also feature discussions about the future of obesity and the importance of shifting the paradigm from individualized, energy balance-oriented, behavior change approaches to more equity-focused, socially-conscious, and causally-oriented approaches that are informed by the lived experience. In addition, the symposium will include discussions about the impact of the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions’ five Innovation Collaboratives.
The planning committee will define the specific topics to be addressed, develop the agenda, and select and invite speakers and discussants. A proceedings of the presentations and discussions at the symposium will be prepared by a designated rapporteur in accordance to institutional guidelines.