International Longevity Centre Global Alliance - Designing the Future of Ageing

March 2024

In partnership with ILC-UK, the ILC Europe Network hosted its inaugural conference in Brussels on 6 March 2024 to explore the challenges and opportunities associated with an ageing European society. Other ILC Global Alliance members in attendance included ILC-Czech Republic, ILC-France and ILC-Netherlands.

With one-third of Europeans set to be aged 65 or over by 2100, finding solutions to help us prepare for an ageing society is vital. This conference convened stakeholders from across business, civil society and government to discuss how to achieve a healthier, happier, more prosperous 100-year life in Europe.

During this event, we heard from expert speakers across three sessions focusing on topics relating to health, finance and communities:

• Healthy ageing and prevention – how do we ensure that we keep people living healthier and happier for longer?
• The longevity dividend – what are the economic opportunities with an ageing society?
• Intergenerational connections – how do we work together to tackle inequalities and create communities that serve people of all ages?

These discussions will now be used to inform a policy document outlining our vision on how to achieve the 100-year life in Europe. With the European Parliament elections just over two months away, there is a real opportunity to put ageing and longevity on the EU policy agenda. We will use our ideas to inspire and engage stakeholders during the 2024-29 EU political cycle following the elections in June.

In doing so, we hope to continue the fruitful engagements we have already had with those in the European Commission, including Vice-President for Democracy and Demography, Dubravka Šuica. This conference was opened by a keynote video message from the Vice-President, which can be viewed here.

Prior to the ILC Europe Network conference, we also had the opportunity to host health stakeholders and civil society leaders during an expert roundtable discussion on mental health across the EU. This discussion highlighted the need for mental health services that are co-designed with some of the most vulnerable and underrepresented service users. The EU has the opportunity in this election year to prioritise the poor mental health that we see across Europe. Roundtable attendees suggested to adopt a similar strategy on mental health to the European Cancer Plan, which has delivered significant progress on cancer treatment in Europe, would be necessary here.

To view the presentations from the day, please visit the ILC-UK’s website:

• Healthy ageing and longevity in Europe: How do we prepare for the 100-year life?
• Mental Health Matters: What are the policy priorities for the Belgian Presidency and the next European Commission?

Visit the ILC Europe Network website here.