ABOUT

Qollab is a research lab located at l’École de santé publique de l’Université de Montréal and affiliated with the Centre de recherche en santé publique (CReSP). Our goal is to work in collaboration with 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities to describe and understand health issues, with a focus on identifying the social, contextual, and structural factors underlying health problems. We are particularly interested in mental health and substance use in 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities. We generate high quality evidence to inform the development and implementation of health promotion policies and interventions.

Our research activities focus on two axes

Advance knowledge on the social, contextual, and structural risk and protective factors related to mental health and substance use among the diverse population of 2S/LGBTQIA+. 

Advance understanding of the lived experience of mental health and substance use among 2S/LGBTQIA+ to identify interventions grounded in 2S/LGBTQIA+ lived experiences.

MEET OUR TEAM

Olivier Ferlatte (he/him), Qollab Director

Olivier Ferlatte is an assistant professor in the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine at l’École de Santé Publique de l’Université de Montréal and a research scientist at the Centre de Recherche en Santé Publique (CRESP). His research focuses on the relationship between stigma, substance use and mental health in 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities. He is a recognized expert on the applications of syndemics theory and intersectionality to 2S/LGBTQIA+ health, and findings drawn from his research have influenced the development of policies and programs aimed at improving the health of 2S/LGBTQIA+ people. His scientific work is based on several methodologies (qualitative, quantitative, art-based method, mixed approaches) and is motivated by a particular interest in community engagement and the participation of people affected by health inequalities as research partners. Olivier holds a Junior One salary award from the Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé. 

Students

David Ortiz-Paredes
(he)

DOCTORAL STUDENT
AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT
David works in qualitative analysis for the Cannapix project. He is a Colombian general practitioner with a Masters in Family Medicine from McGill University. David is interested in the use of education as a tool for health promotion.

Geneviève Fortin
(she)

DOCTORAL STUDENT
AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Geneviève is a doctoral student in public health, global health stream, and works as a public health research assistant and lecturer in global health. Her interests lie in the area of adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights in global health.

Simon Ouellet
(he)

MASTER'S STUDENT
Simon is a master's student in public health - research option. He holds a bachelor's degree in anthropology, focusing on the diverse realities of sexual practices among young gay men. His interest in mental health issues among young people in the 2S/LGBTQIA+ community led him to join Qollab's Pride Talk project.

Elen Cindy
Lufuluabo-Mukundi
(she)

MASTER'S STUDENT
AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Cindy is starting her Master degree in Public Health with a research option in September. She is interested in reproductive health and sexuality of ethnic minorities and is currently working on the Cannapix project.

Max Gaudette
(he/she/they)

DOCTORAL STUDENT
AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Maxim is a queer doctoral student in public health (health promotion option). Inspired by activism and critical approaches, Maxim specializes in so-called marginalized and stigmatized sexual practices within the 2S/LGBTQI+ communities. His doctoral research focuses on consent in contexts of sexualized consumption (chemsex).

Emmanuelle Gareau
(she)

DOCTORAL STUDENT
AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT
PhD candidate in public health, Emmanuelle is interested in the biomedical, anatomical and physiological aspects of sexual and reproductive health. Her dissertation project focuses on the sexual health of women living with genital mutilation and is grounded in feminist and sex-positive perspectives.

Sarah Mangle
(she)

MASTER'S STUDENT
Sarah Mangle is a master's student in public health. She is primarily interested in issues of ethics and precision in population health research. In addition, she is intrigued by how 2SLGBTQ+ people internalize or interrupt dominant research discourses about them, both in the short and long term.

Research team

Amy Rhanim
(they)

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Amy is a research agent at the Public Health School for the Jeune Chercheur·e·s Queers program, and a master's student in political science at UQAM. They are interested in the depoliticization of queer identities in media representations and the importance of militant self-representation.

Ida Giugnatico
(she)

RESEARCH ADVISOR
Ida joined the School of Public Health of University of Montreal as a research advisor for the Pride Talk research project. She holds a first doctorate in Political Philosophy from the University of Calabria (2017) and a second doctorate in Applied Human Sciences from the University of Montreal (2020). She recently coordinated the PnP within Diversity research project at the School of Social Work of University of Quebec at Montreal.

Patrice St-Amour
(he)

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Patrice is a research assistant for the Chemstory project. He coordinated the research "Index de la stigmatisation des personnes vivant avec le VIH au Québec" at COCQ-SIDA and was a trainer at the Portail VIH/sida du Québec. He has a bachelor's degree in sexology from UQAM.

Arlette Ibrahim
(she)

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Arlette is a Masters student in Public Health with a specialization in global health. She is currently working on the Cannapix project and is interested in reproductive health and sexuality as a determinant of health.

Kevin L'Espérance
(he)

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Kevin is an epidemiologist motivated to improve cancer prevention and reduce social inequalities in health. In particular, his research activities focus on the causes of ovarian cancer, lifestyle habits (e.g. diet quality, physical activity, etc.), sustainable health and the transfer of knowledge to different audiences.

Claudelle Brazeau
(she)

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Claudelle is a research officer for the "Pour un système de santé inclusif" project. She is also a research officer with the community organization L'Anonyme. Her dissertation in sexology, completed in 2023 at UQAM, focuses on managing the visibility of LGBQP people's sexual orientation in the family of origin, health and work environments.

Kinda Wassef
(she)

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Kinda is currently working on multiple qualitative projects within Qollab. She holds a Master's degree in Public Health with a concentration in health promotion and prevention from the University of Montreal. Her experience and interests include projects related to mental health, substance use, and sexual health among the general Canadian population, as well as within 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities.