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MILC Club Presentations


2025 PRESENTER LIST (see below for videos)
* indicates presentation is available in 2025 Presentation Videos section
  • January (1) | Kelsey Johnson​ (PhD)
    Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics​, University of Southern California
    Leveraging natural variation to learn about human milk and its impact on the infant
  • January (2) | Narges Khodabandehloo (MSc)
    University of Manitoba
    Lactating Parents Attending Winnipeg Breastfeeding Centre: A descriptive Study
  • February | Janos Zempleni (PhD)
    Willa Cather Professor, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
    Milk exosomes in nutrition and drug delivery
  • March | Amber Balan (MDP)
    University of Winnipeg, University of Manitoba
    First Foods: Navigating Knowledge Pathways within Urban Indigenous Environments ​
  • April (1) | Heather Rusi (PhD candidate)
    University of Calgary
    * The Commercialization of Human Milk and the Need for Evidence-Based Policies
  • April (2) | Larisa Lotoski (PhD)
    University of Manitoba
    Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Center: Pilot Study & Biorepository Updates
  • May | Michael L. Power (PhD)
    Animal scientist, Smithsonian National Zoological Park and Conservation Biology Institute
    * Milk as a biochemical signaling device: A brief trip through 300 million years of evolution​
  • June | Allison Fenske (LLB)
    Clinical Counsel, Faculty of Law, University of Manitoba
    Title TBD
  • July | Sue Tsai (PhD)
    Assistant professor, University of Alberta
    T cell development and tolerance using the autoimmune type 1 diabetes (T1D) model.
  • August | Rauner Gat (PhD)
    Assistant professor, Tufts University
    Tissue-resident adult stem cells
  • September | James Friend (PhD)
    Professor, University of San Diego
    Micro/nanofabrication
  • October (1) | Nathan Nickel (PhD)
    Associate professor, University of Manitoba
    CIHR grant
  • October (2) | Sanoji Wijenayake (PhD)
    Assistant professor, University of Winnipeg
    Title TBD
  • November | Michelle Asbury (PhD)
    PhD candidate in nutritional sciences, University of Toronto
    Microbiomes and maternal/infant health and preterm birth
  • December | Bae Land (PhD)
    Assistant professor, Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht​
    PRIMA - birth cohort
2020 PRESENTER LIST
  • January - Katherine Kearns (MD, CCFP, FCFP, IBCLC), Christina Raimondi (MD, CCFP, FCFP, IBCLC) & Richa Tandon (MD, CCFP)
    ​Affiliation: Co-founders, Winnipeg Breastfeeding Centre
    Title: Lactation physicians in family medicine practice
  • February - Sarah Reyes (PhD)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, Azad Lab
    Title: The Effect of Typical At-Home Pumping and Storage Practices on the Human Milk Microbiome: A Brief Overview of the MiLC Trial.
  • March - Carol Dyck (IBCLC)
    Affiliation: Winnipeg Breastfeeding Network
    Title: October 2020 World Breastfeeding Week
  • April - Angela Blouin (RN)
    Affiliation: Winnipeg Regional Health Authority
    Title: Breastfeeding support resources in Winnipeg
  • May - Nathan Nickel (PhD)
    Affiliation: Manitoba Centre for Health Policy
    Title: Public Health Agency of Canada Baby Friendly Collaborative
  • June - Uma Yakandawala ​
  • Affiliation: Kelly Lab Trainee, Canada
    Title: Medications in breast milk
  • July - Fiona Jardine (PhD)
    Affiliation: Advanced Lactation Consultant, USA
    Title: Breastfeeding Without Nursing: Exclusive Pumping Research
  • August - Jannette Festival (RN, IBCLC)
    Affiliation: Executive Director, NorthernStar Mothers Milk Bank
    Title: NorthernStar Mothers Milk Bank
  • September - Bridget McGann (BA)
    Affiliation: Anthropology, Science Writer and Advocate, March of Science, USA
    Title: Breastfeeding Denialism
  • October -  Shreyas Kumbhare (PhD)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, Azad Lab
    Title:  Mother's Own Milk in the NICU: Association with gut microbiota and oxidative stress in very low birthweight infants
  • November - Uma Yakandawala
    Affiliation: Kelly Lab Trainee
    ​Title:  Systematic review data and comparison with the CHILD study data
​​
2021 ​PRESENTER LIST
  • January - Taiana Martins (PhD)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, Saleem Lab
    Title: Extracellular Vesicles in Human Milk​
  • February - Toni Harmon
    Affiliation: Alto Films Ltd., UK
    Title: The infant microbiome - made simple!
  • March - Christina Raimondi (MD, CCFP, FCFP, IBCLC) & Katherine Kearns (MD, CCFP, FCFP, IBCLC)
    Affiliation: Co-founders, Winnipeg Breastfeeding Centre
    Title: Challenges from the front lines of breastfeeding medicine
  • April - Kellie Thiessen (RM, RN)
    Affiliation: PhD, University of Manitoba
    Title: Newborn Feeding: Methods and Contemporary Issues
  • May - Sarah Keim (MA, MSc)
    Affiliation: PhD, The Ohio State University, USA
    Title: Is Pumping Just as Good as Feeding at the Breast? Emerging Findings and Research Challenges
  • June - Bridget Young (PhD)
    Affiliation: Assistant Professor, University of Rochester, USA
    Title: Donor Milk: Making Decisions Acknowledging What We Know and What We Don’t
  • July - Michelle Asbury (MSc)
    Affiliation: PhD, University of Toronto, SickKids
    Title: Mothers of Preterm Infants have Individualized Breast Milk Microbiota that Changes Temporally Based on Maternal Characteristics
  • August - Sophie Parnel (RD), Subhadeep Chakrabarti (PhD), Kathryn Hopperton ​(PhD)
    Affiliation: Health Canada's Food Directorate
    Title: Human Milk Composition Initiative (HMCI)
  • September - Jane Francis (PhD)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, University of Toronto
    Title: Parkdale Infant Nutrition Security Targeted Evaluation Project (PINSTEP): Formative Research
  • October - Rishma Chooniedass (BN, MN)
    Affiliation: Assistant Professor, University of British Columbia
    Title: Breastfeeding During the COVID-19 Pandemic
  • November - Adetola Louis-Jacques (MD, OBGYN)
    Affiliation: Assistant Professor, University of Florida, USA
    ​Title:  Maternal Benefits of Lactation​
2022 ​PRESENTER LIST
  • January - Suzanne Hetzel Campbell (PhD, RN, IBCLC)
          Affiliation: Associate Professor, UBC School of Nursing
          Title: Innovative interprofessional approach to lactation education and care during the Pandemic - (Link           ​to Recording)
  • February - Sandra Hoy (PhD)
    Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Laurentian University
    Title: The Breastfeeding Buddies story: Building supportive breastfeeding communities - (Link to Recording)
  • March - Natalie Scime (MSc)
    Affiliation: PhD candidate, Epidemiology University of Calgary
    Title: Breastfeeding in mothers with chronic conditions
  • April - Melinda Boss (PhD, BPharm, MPS)
    Affiliation: Research Fellow, University of Western Australia, Australia
    Title: Importance of lactation language standards for science, medicine, and policy - (Link to Recording)
  • May - Mackenzie Whipps (PhD, CLC)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, UC Davis Department of Human Ecology, USA
    Title: When promotion isn’t enough
  • June - Ryan Pace (PhD)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, McGuire Laboratory, University of Idaho, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, USA
    Title:  Human milk and COVID-19: Risks and benefits with respect to mother-to-child transmission of SARS-CoV-2
  • July - Sarah Turner (M.Sc)
    Affiliation: PhD candidate, Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba, THRiVE Discovery Lab, University of Manitoba
    Title: Breastfeeding during the COVID-19 pandemic - (Link to Recording)
  • August - Liz Decaire (RN)
    Affiliation: First Nation Registered Nurse
    Title: Strengthening families’ maternal child health in First Nation Communities
  • September - Therese O'Sullivan (PhD)
    Affiliation: Associate Professor, Discipline Lead for Nutrition and Dietetics, Edith Cowan University, Australia
    Title: The Antenatal Colostrum Expressing (ACE) study - (Link to Recording)
  • October - Kyly Whitfield (PhD)
    Affiliation: Associate Professor, Department of Applied Human Nutrition, Mount St Vincent University
    Title: Breast versus bottle-feeding human milk: insights into feeding responsiveness among mothers and other caregivers
  • November - Martijn van Herwijne (PhD)
    Affiliation: Junior Assistant Professor, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
    ​Title: Mommy's little secrets: How extracellular vesicles from milk influence T cell function -  (Link to Recording)
​​​
2023 ​PRESENTER LIST
  • January (2 presentations): 
    1) Natalie Rodriguez (MBA, ACC)
    Affiliation: MILC Co-director and Operations Director
    Title: Health equity and liberatory systems design in human milk research and education
    2) Carol Dyck (BN, IBCLC), Roxanne Myslicki (CHN), Robyn Brown (Peer connector)
    Affiliations: Milk Mentors MB Program, Youville Centre
    Title: Introducing Milk Mentors MB - new peer infant feeding support for MB families - (Link to Recording)
  • February - Sanoji Wijenayake (PhD)
    Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, University of Winnipeg
    Title: Milk Nanovesicles & developmental programming - (Link to Recording)
  • March - Stephanie Langel (PhD)
    Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, USA
    Title: The maternal gut-mammary axis's role in infant protection against viral infections
  • April - Karishma Hossein (PhD), Bridget McGann (MA), Narges Khodabandehloo (BSc) 
    Affiliations: Past and Present THRiVE Discovery Lab Trainees
    Title: Journal club on 2023 Lancet Series on breastfeeding
  • May - Aimee Grant (PhD)
    Affiliation: Senior Lecturer and Wellcome Trust Career Development Fellow, Swansea University Centre for Lactation, Infant Feeding, and Translation, UK
    Title: Autistic people’s experiences of breastfeeding - (Link to Recording)
  • June - Anna Gruending (MPH, MA)
    Affiliation: Independent Global Public Health Consultant, France
    Title: Marketing of breastmilk substitutes: Consolidating the evidence to drive action
  • July (2 presentations):
    1) Karishma Hossein (PhD)
    Affiliation: Postdoctoral Scholar, THRiVE Discovery Lab
    Title: Developing an inclusive language position statement for THRiVE Discovery Lab research in breastfeeding research
    2) Maryanne Perrin (PhD)
    Affiliation: Associate Professor, Department of Nutrition at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, USA
    Title: Preliminary Findings from the Global Donor Human Milk Study
  • August - Chantell Witten (PhD)
    Affiliation: Technical Lead (the Infant and Young Child Feeding Advocacy Project) & Senior Lecturer (University of the Witwatersrand), South Africa
    Title: Industry Influence and Interference within the health system: Building counteractions - (Link to Recording)
  • September - Rebecca Hoban (MD,MPH)
    Affiliation: Director of Breastfeeding Medicine (Division of Neonatology) & Associate Professor of Pediatrics (University of Washington), USA
    Title: Intranasal Human Milk as Stem Cell Therapy in Preterm Infants with Intraventricular Hemorrhage: Safety, Feasibility, and Milk Analysis - (Link to Recording)
  • October (2 presentations):
    1) Christina Raimondi (MD, CCFP, FCFP, IBCLC) and Katherine Kearns (MD, CCFP, FCFP, IBCLC)
    Affiliation: Co-founders, Winnipeg Breastfeeding Centre 
    Title: NABBLM (North American Board of Breastfeeding and Lactation Medicine) board certification program
    2) Joann McDermid (PhD)
    Affiliation: Professor, Cornell University and the University of Virginia School of Medicine, USA
    Title: Milk research in rural Africa - what’s breastfeeding got to do with it?
  • November - Caitlin Ball (RN)
    Affiliation: NICU Transport Nurse Clinician, Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, Alberta
    Title: The MOM (Mother's Own Milk) Project: Increasing Access to Mother's Own Milk in Calgary NICU's
​
2024 PRESENTER LIST
  • January | Garry Shen (MD, PhD)
    Professor, Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Department of Internal Medicine
    Lactation Consultant cuts in Manitoba and their impact on breastfeeding rates
  • February | Ilana Levene (MRCPCH (Member of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health))
    PhD Student, Nuffield Department of Population Health (NDPH), University of Oxford, UK
    Influence of pattern of expressing on lactation outcomes (frequency, gaps, timing)
  • March | Mia Elfenbaum (BA, MSc)
    Research Faculty, Red River College Polytechnic
    MyBaby (my-baby.ca) – an online parenting resource   
  • April | Michael Pitino (PhD)
    Postdoctoral Scholar, Oregon State University, USA
    Milk bioactive proteins and peptides
  • May | Marion Emilie Genevieve Brunck (PhD) 
    Professor Researcher, School of Engineering and Sciences, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico
    * Breastmilk immunology
  • June | Jannette Festival (RN, IBCLC)
    Executive Director, NorthernStar Mothers Milk Bank
    BEE (Breastfeeding Education and Equity) program
  • July | Ellen Evans (PhD)
    Reader, Food Safety Behaviour at ZERO2FIVE Food Industry Centre, UK
    Donor human milk is not the solution (letter to the editor)
  • August | To be determined
  • September | Kathryn Knoop (PhD)
    Assistant Professor, Mayo Clinic Rochester, USA
    * Breastfeeding in immune development
  • October | Carly Muletz Wolz (PhD)
    Molecular Ecologist, Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute, USA
    * Eco evolutionary processes and milk microbiome
  • November | Narges Khodabandehloo (MSc student)
    MSc student, Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba
    Manitoba Training Program for Health Services Research project results
  • December | Larisa Lotoski ​(PhD)
    Lead Research Associate of THRiVE Discovery Lab, University of Manitoba
    ​The Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Center – An interdisciplinary “bench to population” research platform and administrative data linkage proof-of-concept study​​

2025 PRESENTATION VIDEOS 
Please note that we record and share presentations according to the presenters' preferences; not all recordings are available publicly.
April | Heather Rusi (PhD candidate)
University of Calgary
The Commercialization of Human Milk and the Need for Evidence-Based Policies

May | Michael L. Power (PhD)
Animal scientist, Smithsonian National Zoological Park and Conservation Biology Institute
Milk as a biochemical signaling device: A brief trip through 300 million years of evolution
2022 PRESENTATION VIDEOS
January | Suzanne Hetzel Campbell
Associate Professor, School of Nursing, University of British Columbia
Innovative Interprofessional Approach to Lactation Education and Care During the Pandemic

February | Sandra Hoy and Michelle Buckner
Sandra Hoy, Assistant Professor, Social Work, Laurentian University
Michelle Buckner, BSW, Breastfeeding Buddies Coordinator

The Breastfeeding Buddies Story: Building Supportive Breastfeeding Communities

April | Melinda Boss
PhD, BPharm, MPS, Senior Research Fellow, University of Western Australia
Importance of Lactation Language Standards for Science, Medicine and Policy

July | Sarah Turner
PhD Candidate, Children's Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba, THRiVE Discovery Lab, University of Manitoba
Breastfeeding during the COVID-19 pandemic

September | Therese O'Sullivan
Associate Professor, Discipline Lead for Nutrition and Dietetics, Edith Cowan University, Australia
The Antenatal Colostrum Expressing (ACE) Study

December | Martijn Vanherwijnen
Jr. Assistant Professor, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Utrecht University
Mommy's little secrets: How extracellular vesicles from milk influence T cell function.
2023 PRESENTATION VIDEOS
January | Carol Dyck, Roxanne Myslicki, Robyn Brown
Carol Dyck (IBCLC, volunteer), Roxanne Myslicki (CHN, Youville Centre), Robyn Brown (Peer Connector)
Introducing Milk Mentors MB - new peer infant feeding support for MB families

February | Sanoji Wijenayake
Principal investigator and assistant professor in Cell and Molecualr Biology, University of Winnipeg.
Milk nanovesicles & developmental programming.

May | Aimee Grant
Senior Lecturer and Welcome Trust Career Development Fellow, Swansea University Centre for Lactation, Infant feeding, and Translation.
Autistic people's experiences of breastfeeding.

August | Chantell Witten
Technical Lead for the Infant and Young Child Feeding Advocacy Project and Senior Lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand
Industry Influence and Interference within the health system: Building counteractions​

September | Rebecca Hoban
Director of Breastfeeding Medicine for the Division of Neonatology and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington.
Intranasal Human Milk as Stem Cell Therapy in Preterm Infants with Intraventricular Hemorrhage: Safety, Feasibility, and Milk Analysis​
2024 PRESENTATION VIDEOS
May | Marion Emilie Genevieve Brunck 
Professor Researcher, School of Engineering and Sciences, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico
Breastmilk immunology
[ video coming soon ]


September | Kathryn Knoop 
Assistant Professor, Mayo Clinic Rochester, USA
Breastfeeding in immune development
[ video coming soon ]

October | Carly Muletz Wolz
Molecular ecologist at the Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute
Eco-evolutionary processes structure milk microbiomes across the mammalian tree of life

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  • Home
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    • Our Partners
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  • **DONATE MILK**