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24.09.2025
Every step counts - building a healthier, more resilient and stronger Europe with physical activity for all
The annual European Week of Sport is running 23rd - 30th September this year celebrating a decade of encouraging Europeans to #BeActive. More than 40 countries were involved last year. Why is it important to address physical activity in JA PreventNCD? Physical activity is one of the major lifestyle determinants of health and wellbeing. Conversely, physical inactivity, not meeting WHO Guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour, remains one of the leading risk factors for cancer and other NCDs. Beyond its disease preventive and therapeutic benefits, regular physical activity improves mental, physical and social wellbeing and overall quality of life. And it helps people to be stronger when facing challenges. Despite the well-known advantages, 1 in 3 European adults still doesn´t meet the recommended physical activity levels. According to the Health-enhancing physical activity in the European Union, 2024 report, while progress has been made, challenges remain, underlining the need for further effort to promote physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour. How is JA PreventNCD contributing to physical activity promotion in Europe? JA PreventNCD is committed to reducing the burden of cancer and other NCDs by addressing determinants of health, including shared risk factors like physical inactivity across sectors and levels. The project covers broad range of activities supporting physical activity promotion on all levels, including: Pilot monitoring physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep National physical activity policy approaches Pilots in local communities to create physical activity friendly environments and conditions Activities and tools that support individuals at risk and individuals that are undergoing rehabilitation to be physically active. Through these and numerous other efforts, JA PreventNCD is making significant contribution to building a healthier, more resilient and stronger Europe - every step counts. Author: Gígja Gunnarsdóttir Gígja is the co-leader of the Health in All Policies work package (WP9), coordinator for the cross-cutting theme "Physical Activity" in the JA PreventNCD and a program manager at the Directorate of Health in Iceland.
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/cross-cutting-themes/every-step-counts-building-a-healthier-more-resilient-and-stronger-europe-with-physical-activity-for-all/
29.06.2026
Wellbeing as a Societal Goal: What Does It Mean for Policy and Governance?
Wellbeing as a Societal Goal: Why It Matters for Health and NCD Prevention In June 2026, policymakers, politicians, researchers, civil society representatives, and public health experts gathered in Oslo for a conference on wellbeing as a societal goal. The event, organized by the Norwegian Directorate of Health, the Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services, and JA PreventNCD, explored what a stronger focus on wellbeing could mean for public policy and governance. The conference also marked the launch of a new Norwegian report, Livskvalitet som styringsmål ("Wellbeing as a Governance Goal") (English summary is available in the report), led Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) with support from JA PreventNCD. The report examines how wellbeing can be integrated into policymaking and public governance and contributes to a growing international discussion on moving beyond traditional economic indicators as the primary measure of societal progress. At the centre of this discussion is a simple but important question: how should we define societal progress? For decades, economic indicators such as GDP growth, productivity, and employment have been the primary benchmarks of success. Yet these measures tell only part of the story. They reveal little about whether people feel healthy, connected, secure, or able to live meaningful lives. Therefore, there is growing interest in wellbeing as a societal goal. A well-being approach broadens the focus beyond economic performance and considers the conditions that allow individuals and communities to thrive. By placing human wellbeing at the centre of decision-making, it offers a more comprehensive vision of societal progress. For the NCD prevention work, this perspective is particularly important. Beyond Health Outcomes "Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) remain the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Yet their impact extends far beyond healthcare systems and mortality statistics," says Linda Granlund, Project Coordinator of JA PreventNCD. "Chronic diseases can affect a person's ability to work, participate in education, engage in social activities, and maintain independence throughout life." A wellbeing perspective helps shift the conversation from simply treating disease to creating the conditions that allow people to live well. It recognizes that health is deeply connected to the environments in which people live, learn, work, and age. Factors such as access to healthy food, opportunities for physical activity, education, social support, safe communities, and economic security all influence both wellebeing and the risk of developing NCDs. As a result, improving population well-being requires action far beyond the health sector alone. A Stronger Case for Prevention Viewing policy through a wellbeing-lens also strengthens the case for prevention. Too often, preventive measures are evaluated mainly in terms of reducing healthcare costs. While these savings are important, they represent only part of the picture. Prevention helps people remain healthy, active, and engaged in their communities. It allows individuals to enjoy better physical and mental health wellbeing, maintain social connections, and contribute to society over longer periods of time. These benefits are difficult to capture through economic indicators alone, yet they are central to how people experience their lives. By incorporating wellbeinginto decision-making, policymakers can better understand the broader value of investments in health promotion and NCD prevention.
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/events/wellbeing-as-a-societal-goal-what-does-it-mean-for-policy-and-governance/
29.05.2026
Coordinating Efforts for Healthier Living Environments in Pula, Croatia
Between 26 and 28 May, multidisciplinary and cross-sector teams working on the transformation of Healthy Living Environments across Europe travelled to Croatia to pool their efforts and share their insights in the fight against non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The JA PreventNCD Healthy Living Environments annual meeting, held in Pula, Croatia, and organised by the Croatian Institute of Public Health (CIPH), opened with a clear and inspiring message: preventing cancer and other non-communicable diseases requires healthier environments, stronger policy action, and a shared commitment to making prevention part of everyday life. Over three days, participants discussed policies, interventions and research initiatives aimed at creating healthier places to live, learn, work and play. Through plenary sessions, thematic discussions and collaborative workshops, the meeting provided an opportunity to strengthen cooperation and advance a shared European agenda for prevention.
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/news-updates/coordinating-efforts-for-healthier-living-environments-in-pula-croatia/
29.05.2026
New campaign to make prevention clearer and more accessible
JA PreventNCD is preparing to launch a new campaign aimed at policymakers, professionals, communities and the wider public, helping more people understand what prevention is about and why healthier choices must be made easier, fairer and more accessible for everyone. The campaign will be presented during the JA PreventNCD General Assembly in Rome, taking place from 9–11 June 2026 at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità. The General Assembly will bring partners together to share project achievements, reflect on progress and discuss the way forward for strengthening prevention across Europe. The launch session, “Campaigns as a Strategic Tool in Today’s Attention Economy: Premiere of JA PreventNCD’s New Campaign,” will be presented by Live Bøe Johannesen from the Norwegian Directorate of Health. The campaign focuses on four major shared risk factors for cancer and other non-communicable diseases: alcohol, tobacco and nicotine, nutrition and physical activity. It uses clear, accessible and motivating messages to show how prevention is connected to everyday life, from what people eat and how active they are to the environments, products, policies and communities that shape health. To learn more about the thinking behind the campaign, we spoke with Thea Nørgaard Breili from the Norwegian Directorate of Health, project leader of the campaign, about its aims, messages and development process. Can you briefly introduce the new JA PreventNCD campaign and explain what it aims to achieve? "The campaign aims to put prevention of NCDs on the agenda for both stakeholders, policymakers and general public. We aim to increase awareness of the benefits of prevention, highlight accessible measures that can be implemented, and strengthen public support for potential interventions. Non-communicable diseases are often discussed using specialised public health terminology, but many of the risk factors are closely connected to everyday life. What people eat, how active they are, whether tobacco, nicotine or alcohol products are widely available, and how communities are planned all influence health. The campaign shows that prevention is not only about telling individuals to change their behaviour. It is also about creating healthier environments through policy, regulation, planning, services and community action." What are the campaign’s key messages? "The key message shared across the campaign is that through small changes, whether structural or personal, we can all contribute to better health, both in the short and long term. This applies to stakeholders, policymakers and the general public. The campaign shows that everyone has a role to play, from those shaping policies and environments to individuals and communities taking practical steps in everyday life." The campaign was developed in close collaboration with participating member countries. How did that collaboration shape the final concept and messaging? "The collaboration helped us see prevention from many different perspectives. JA PreventNCD brings together partners from across Europe, and that diversity has been important in shaping a campaign that can appeal to a broader audience. At the same time, the collaboration pushed us to define and prioritise a shared direction that all partners could support and work towards together. Through this process, we identified a set of unifying and important messages that strengthen both the collaboration and the overall communication of the project." How did you balance the need for a shared European campaign with different national contexts, languages and public health priorities? "JA PreventNCD has chosen to focus on four shared risk factors: alcohol, tobacco and nicotine, nutrition and physical activity. This gives us a common starting point that all partners can recognise and build from. Based on this, and in close cooperation with the thematic coordinators, we developed simple and important messages that are aligned with research and evidence, while still being easy to understand and motivating for the audience. Creating messages that are relevant across different countries and public health priorities can be challenging. But this process helped us lift our gaze and focus on the overarching messages that apply across contexts. To make the material more inclusive, we included different ethnicities, personalities and characters while keeping one clear storyline. The animated world also gives us more freedom in how we show the setting. It does not have to be one specific real place, or it could be anywhere. The film includes elements such as a city, suburban areas, trees, roads, parks and houses, with the idea that it should not be too clear whether we are in Northern or Southern Europe."
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/interviews/new-campaign-to-make-prevention-clearer-and-more-accessible/
20.05.2026
The Great Challenge: developing a digital tool for active workplaces
The Great Challenge is a health psychology-based intervention being developed in France to promote physical activity among workers. Over a four-week period, participating employees are encouraged to accumulate as many “energy cubes” as possible, with each cube representing 15 minutes of continuous physical activity. To encourage social motivation and collective participation, cubes are doubled when activities are carried out with colleagues. At the centre of the intervention is a dedicated mobile application, currently under development, designed to support collaborative engagement across participating organisations. The concept brings together all participants within the “Great Challenge Community”, while also allowing each person to contribute to progress at three collective levels: their team, their organisation and the wider community of participating organisations. This approach aims to strengthen motivation by shifting the focus from individual responsibility alone towards shared goals and collective encouragement. By making movement more social, visible and connected to workplace culture, The Great Challenge may be particularly useful for engaging people who are less physically active or who find it difficult to include movement in their daily routines. The application is being designed to include an energy cube counter, where participants can log minutes of physical activity and see them automatically converted into cubes. In addition to personal tracking, the app will allow users to visualise collective progress in real time at team, organisational and community levels. Planned features also include a visual calendar showing daily cube accumulation, scheduled physical activity events organised by teams or workplaces, and supporting resources such as videos, podcasts and information about local sports or physical activity opportunities. A dynamic feed is also expected to help maintain engagement throughout the challenge period. The Great Challenge mobile application is currently in development and is expected to become available soon. Further updates will be shared as the application progresses, including information on availability and how organisations can get involved.
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/news-updates/the-great-challenge-developing-a-digital-tool-for-active-workplaces/
20.05.2026
Putting Europe in motion
This article will be included in the Healthy Living Environment Newsletter. You can subscribe here to stay updated. Across Europe, a growing movement is redefining how physical activity is understood in public health. No longer seen simply as an individual lifestyle choice, movement is increasingly being approached as a collective, environmental and lifelong issue –shaped by schools, neighbourhoods, workplaces, families and local communities. Within the European Joint Action JA PreventNCD, innovative pilot actions that aim to make active living more accessible, inclusive and sustainable across all stages of life are being developed. From digital tools helping adolescents discover enjoyable forms of movement, to community walking initiatives for older adults, workplace challenges promoting team-based activity and local platforms connecting citizens with healthy opportunities in their area, the initiative reflects a shared European ambition: embedding movement into everyday life. Between 2010 and 2022, around 25% of the population in the WHO European Region was insufficiently active. Prevalence varies widely between countries, ranging from 8.4% to 51.6%, reflecting strong territorial and social inequalities in access to opportunities for physical activity. While progress has been uneven, 17 countries - mostly within the EU14 - have already achieved early the target of a 15% reduction in inactivity by 2030.
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/news-updates/putting-europe-in-motion/
04.05.2026
Health in All Policies: aligning decisions across society with public health
This article is part of a special series for European Public Health Week, highlighting how JA PreventNCD contributes to each of this year’s daily themes and supports stronger prevention across Europe. European Public Health Week is taking place this week, with this year’s overarching theme focusing on investing for sustainable health and well-being. The week opened with a daily theme that is highly relevant to JA PreventNCD: aligning all policies with public health. This theme is closely connected to one of the central ideas behind JA PreventNCD: preventing major chronic diseases requires action far beyond the healthcare system. Many of Europe’s greatest health challenges, including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases and mental health conditions, are often referred to as non-communicable diseases, or NCDs. Unlike infectious diseases, they are not passed directly from person to person, but they are strongly shaped by the environments people live in and the conditions that influence everyday choices. The food available to people, the way cities are planned, opportunities for physical activity, working conditions, education, housing, transport, environmental quality and social support all affect health and well-being. This idea is at the heart of Health in All Policies, which is an important part of JA PreventNCD’s work. Following the recent Wellbeing Economy Forum in Reykjavík, where participants explored how societies can redefine success around health, well-being and sustainability, the theme feels especially timely. To mark European Public Health Week, we spoke with Katri Sääksjärvi, from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), who leads the Health in All Policies work in JA PreventNCD, about why this approach matters and how it can support stronger prevention across Europe.
https://www.preventncd.eu/newsroom/news-updates/health-in-all-policies-aligning-decisions-across-society-with-public-health/