International conference on longevity to be held in Brussels for 3 days

Sep 9 2016

The Eurosymposium on Healthy Ageing (EHA) is an international event that provides a unique opportunity for researchers, government officials, biotech executives, entrepreneurs, and non-governmental institutions from around the world to meet, network, and forge new scientific collaborations. The EHA is a biannual conference organized for the first time in 2012 by the European non-governmental organization HEALES, a Brussels-based association stimulating, promoting and informing the public about healthy life extension. Driving Heales and the development of the EHA conference are its two co-presidents, Sven Bulterijs and Didier Coeurnelle.

The world has already faced the variety of challenges caused by an ageing population and the so called 'Silver tsunami', but following major discoveries in science and biomedicine in recent years we are now on the edge of a paradigm shift from treatment to prevention and an improvement in healthy longevity. The quickly growing trend has been marked by a number of speakers at the "World Economic Forum" in Davos and echoed by the major media such as The Economist journal which began a series of conferences in 2016 called "Ageing Societies" and "The business of longevity".

The EHA is the largest and the most authoritative conference on the subject of longevity in Northern Europe. It provides a unique platform with the particular purpose to embrace the latest findings made by passionate scientific individuals. The programme board encourages you to immerse yourself into the programme for knowledge exchange and new network creation. The time has come to live longer healthier lives, and everyone is welcome to learn about the latest discoveries in the science of healthy longevity.

This year we have over 30 scientific lectures and 3 panel sessions by the most prominent scientists in the field of biotechnology and regenerative medicine, providing access to the forefront of scientific research in the field of ageing. The keynote lecture on the first day will be given by the renowned tissue engineer Dr. Alexander Seifalian (University College London). On the second day the keynote will be given by one of the leading experts in the biology of aging, Dr. David Gems (University College London). The three days are filled with lectures given by a number of the brightest minds in biomedicine from the University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, University College London, Maastricht University and many other reputable scientific institutions.

Over the recent decades, science has been exploring how to tackle the root and consequences of ageing. While in previous years the field of longevity was explored exclusively by the scientific community, it is now widely studied and represented by the innovative general public. The biotech industry of aging has come to maturation in recent years with the founding of many biotech companies focused on aging, for example Calico, InSilico Medicine, BioViva, Human Longevity inc., and many others. This year the conference will host a number of entrepreneurs and venture investors including Dmitry Kaminskiy, the general partner of Deep Knowledge Ventures.

The conference will last 3 days, during which the participants will cover a wide range of questions from deep research and practical medical applications to investment issues. The first two days will be devoted to discussing the biology of aging and the biotech market. The last day will centre around the societal, ethical and economical aspects of aging. Europe has already faced a variety of challenges caused by the 'silver tsunami' in a manner similar to Japan, both from the economic and sociological points of view. What if the process of getting old could be mitigated and associated diseases prevented? What opportunities are there for the non-scientific community? The conference will raise the critical issues of related finance aspects, public health issues, investments and business opportunities arising out of ageing societies. In collaboration with Deep Knowledge Ventures we will discuss these matters with leading representatives. The conference will end with the adoption of a Declaration for Longevity in which the importance of longevity research will be stated, and tangible steps will be set to achieve this goal.

This year the conference will become multidisciplinary and even more informative and thought-provoking. Due to the subject's rising popularity and the exponentially growing knowledge in the field, the conference will take an annual form starting this year.

Join us in the Royal Library of Belgium at the EHA 2016, the pre-eminent longevity think tank in Northern Europe!

Source: Biogerontology Research Foundation