Keynote Speakers

ISPA 2026 Keynote Speakers

Baiba Martinsone, Dr.psych.

Professor of Clinical psychology, senior researcher in educational psychology

Department of Psychology, University of Latvia, Latvia

Certified Clinical and health psychologist, School and educational psychologist; supervisor.

Paper Title
School mental health from the perspective of teachers’ well-being

Paper Summary
Teachers’ professional well-being is closely related to the quality of their work, consequently contributing to students’ academic achievement and the development of a positive school climate. This relationship is reciprocal: a supportive, positive school climate also strengthens teachers’ mental health and overall well-being.

Empirical evidence indicates that promoting teacher well-being requires both individualized support and whole-system approaches. This keynote will highlight the role of school psychologists in supporting teacher well-being for better student outcomes.

Maria Melchior

Epidemiologist, Senior Researcher at INSERM, Institut Pierre Louis d’Epidémiologie et de Santé Publique, INSERM/Sorbonne Université, Paris

Annual Chair in Public Health, Collège de France, Paris, 2025-2026

Intervention Tittle
Social inequalities in youths mental health: from observation to action.

Rebecca Shankland

Biography:
Rebecca Shankland is Professor of Developmental Psychology at Lumière Lyon 2 University, Head of the Observatory of Social and Emotional Competences and Well-being in Educational Contexts, and researcher at the Development, Individual, Process, Disability, Education Laboratory (DIPHE Lab). She is also a member of the Institut Universitaire de France. For twenty years, her research has focused on the development of social and emotional competences in children and adults, in schools and within families. She has published numerous scientific articles and books on the development of mental health and social and emotional learning. She contributed to the national public health guidelines on social and emotional development, and is a member of the Work Group on Well-being at School of the Scientific Council for National Education (CSEN).

Paper Title:
Improving student mental health: The role of social and emotional competences

Summary:
Social and emotional competences, identified by the World Health Organisation as important resources for adaptation and resilience, promote mental health, well-being and academic success in children and adolescents. This is why they are now included in national education programmes and teacher training are become more widespread. This conference will present the effectiveness of teacher trainings and school-based interventions aimed at developing social and emotional competences in terms of mental health, school climate, quality of relationships and engagement in learning, as well as the conditions conducive to the development of these competences in school contexts.