Marja Jylhä to join the steering group of an EU age programme

Professor Marja Jylhä has been selected to join the Scientific Advisory Board of a Joint Planning Initiative on population change and ageing entitled More Years, Better Lives.  The purpose of the Joint Programming work initiated by the EU Commission is to increase collaboration in research and research funding in Europe on several key areas of societal significance.

The More Years, Better Lives initiative involves 13 European countries.  The Scientific Advisory Board will coordinate the preparatory work to be accomplished in the work groups and prepare a research programme based thereon.

Marja Jylhä is a Professor of Gerontology at the University of Tampere and Director of the Gerontology Research Center that is a joint effort between the University of Tampere and the University of Jyväskylä.  She has previously served as chair of the Scientific Council for the FUTURAGE Project, which prepared the European road map for ageing research completed last October.

“The specific idea behind the 'Joint Programming' project is to exert influence on the national research policies of the countries involved so that the challenges of ageing are sensibly taken into account,” says Professor Jylhä.

“Research needs funding, joint use of data should be facilitated and infrastructures strengthened.  In Europe the population ageing is advanceing faster and sooner than in other continents and Finland has a good competitive position due to its excellent population data and statistics.  Compared to the USA, however, the funding options for ageing research in Europe are still somewhat fragmentary.”

From the Gerontology Research Center the JPI preparatory work groups also include Taina Rantanen,  Professor of Gerontology at the University of Jyväskylä and Professor Pekka Rissanen, Professor of Health Economics at the University of Tampere.

More Years, Better Lives joint planning initiative