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ALPS 2027: Moving Mental Health Research Forward—Connecting Evidence, Experience, Practice and Policy 
18th – 19th March 2027 
Deakin Downtown, Melbourne
In-person event

Following the success of ALPS 2026, the Australian Lifestyle Psychiatry Symposium will return in March 2027 for two days of discussion, connection and collaboration focused on strengthening and advancing lifestyle psychiatry research in Australia.

ALPS brings together people with different forms of knowledge and expertise to examine how the lifestyle psychiatry research field can move forward – and how research can better serve people living with mental health issues, their carers and families, clinicians, service providers, policymakers and the wider community.

Building on the strong community and research priority-setting discussions established at ALPS 2026, the 2027 symposium will broaden the perspectives represented across the audience and program. Researchers will be joined by people with lived and living experience of mental ill-health, carers and supporters, clinicians, service providers, policymakers and system leaders to identify research gaps, examine challenges and opportunities, and consider how evidence can be strengthened, translated and applied.

ALPS 2027 will provide opportunities for:

• presentations on current and emerging lifestyle psychiatry research

• discussion of research gaps, priorities and methodological challenges

• contributions from lived experience, clinical practice, service delivery and policy

• constructive cross-disciplinary and cross-sector discussion

• connection and collaboration across the lifestyle psychiatry field

• consideration of practical next steps for research, translation and impact

ALPS is designed for people who want to actively contribute to shaping and strengthening lifestyle psychiatry research. It is not primarily a training or introductory education event.

Key Information

Dates: Thursday 18th March 2027 9:30am – 4:30pm, and Friday 19th March 9:30am – 4pm 2027
Location: Deakin Downtown Corporate Centre, Level 12, Tower 2, 727 Collins Street, Melbourne
Registration: Registrations will open on 15th September 2026
Registration will include full access to the two-day program and catering.

Keynote Speaker

A keynote plenary presentation from A/Prof Felipe Schuch, an associate professor at Deakin University’s Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation (IMPACT) and Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition (IPAN). His research examines how physical activity and exercise can associate with mental disorders, particularly depression, and the biological and behavioural mechanisms underlying these effects. He has published more than 300 peer-reviewed papers and was recognised as a Highly Cited Researcher six times between 2020 and 2026. His work spans epidemiology, clinical trials, evidence synthesis and implementation, with a focus on translating exercise science into practical, person-centred mental healthcare.

Submit a presentation proposal

What knowledge, evidence or experience could help move lifestyle psychiatry research forward?

We invite proposals from researchers, people with lived experience of mental ill-health, carers and supporters, clinicians, service providers, policymakers, community and advocacy representatives, students, early-career professionals and others working across lifestyle and mental health.

Proposals could share:

• current or emerging research
• research priorities, evidence gaps or methodological challenges
• lived-experience, carer or clinical perspectives
• examples of integrating lifestyle approaches into clinical practice, programs or services
• lessons from implementation, policy or research translation
• ideas for strengthening collaboration and impact.

You do not need to be a researcher or have formal research findings to contribute. We welcome research evidence, practice-based knowledge and lived-experience perspectives that can help make lifestyle psychiatry research more relevant, rigorous and useful.

Submissions will open on the 15th September 2026. 

Apply for a travel grant

Would financial support help make it possible for you to attend ALPS 2027 in Melbourne?

A limited number of travel grants are available to help reduce financial barriers and support a diverse range of people to participate in the symposium. If financial support would help you attend, please see the application form for further information.

Applications will open on the 15th September 2026. 

Accessibility and inclusion

We are committed to making ALPS 2027 a welcoming, respectful and accessible event for all. We recognise that people engage and participate in different ways and are incorporating neuroinclusive practices into the symposium.

The program will include shorter presentations and regular breaks. Attendees are welcome to stand, move, change position, and bring quiet fidgets or other support items. A quiet room will be available, and optional name-badge stickers will allow attendees to communicate their preferences around physical contact.

Attendees can identify accessibility or participation requirements during registration, or contact alps@deakin.edu.au to discuss their needs privately. We will accommodate requests wherever reasonably possible.

Building on ALPS 2026

ALPS 2026 focused on identifying priorities for the future of lifestyle psychiatry research. The resulting communiqué summarises the key themes, priorities and proposed directions arising from the symposium.

Read the ALPS 2026 Research Priorities Communique here

The 2027 symposium will build on these discussions while creating greater opportunities for research to be informed by lived and living experience, clinical practice, service delivery, implementation and policy.

Organising Committee

Associate Professor Wolfgang Marx (Deakin University) (Chair)
Rebecca Orr (Deakin University) (Deputy Chair)
Dr Urska Arnautovska (University of Queensland)
Dr Justin Chapman (Griffith University)
Dr Samantha Dawson (Deakin University)
Dr Ruben Fernandez-Rodriguez (Deakin University)
Associate Professor Alyssa Milton (University of Sydney)
Professor Simon Rosenbaum (University of New South Wales)
Dr Scott Teasdale (University of New South Wales)
Dr Mike Trott (University of Queensland)

For questions about the event, please email alps@deakin.edu.au.

Save the date and join us in Melbourne to help shape the future of lifestyle psychiatry research.