The purpose of the event is, according to the organisers, to debate and to suggest innovative solutions that contribute to the promotion of an active and healthy ageing. It also represents an economic opportunity in the framework of the called Silver Economy and the strategy known as Blueprint which are encouraged by the European Commission in order to exchange good practices at a regional and national level.

Jordi Garcés, director of Polibienestar, affirms that “according to the World Health Organization, the promotion of health along the life reduces health inequalities in old age, reinforces the European health systems in the face of the changeable needs of its citizens and spreads the evidence of social-health initiatives that have an impact on the welfare of the old people”. “The scalability and the transfer of knowledge are two of the main objectives of the European Commission when it comes to public policies”. The professor Garcés also says that the purpose of the meeting is “to copy the successful practices from a part of Europe to others as well as to translate public policies into practical programmes which can be implemented by the local and regional entities”.

The event is open to experts, technicians of the Administration, researchers and representatives of the third sector of the active and healthy ageing field. It will take place during the morning of Thursday 8 at Las Naves. There, European experts will speak about innovative aspects to face this challenge and tools for the evaluation and funding of European projects. Moreover, that morning, the entity Age Platform Europe will open the call of the 1st edition of the European Prize Silver Economy, Silver Economy Awards. In the afternoon the work sessions of the partnership of the platform EIP on AHA, supreme representative of active and healthy ageing which is supported by the European Commission, will take place.

On 9 June it will take place at the Cultural Centre La Nau of the Universitat de València the open meeting of the European Project Appcare which is funded by the 3rd Health Programme of the European Commission and whose partner is Polibienestar. This project aims at generating an integral model of itineraries of attention for old and fragile patients.

Valencia will be the scene of experts in public policies during all the week. There will be events co-organised by Polibienestar and the Valencian Government during the days 6 and 7 June. These two days will be focused on four vulnerable groups: the elderly, people with disabilities, the young and the children. Three European networks, Ensa, Elisan and Coral, will have during two days their general assemblies, working sessions and visits to centres in which good practices have been carried on.

Polibienestar is a Research Institute on Social Welfare Policies of the Universitat de València. It is specialised in research, innovation, social technology, technical advising and training in the field of social policies and its objective is to improve the welfare and quality of life of the society.

+ Info: http://www.polibienestar.org/