Press Release: The European Commission welcomes the first EU ‘Joint Programming Initiative’ to boost research on Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases

Leading researchers from across Europe gathered on 15 April 2010 in Stockholm to develop a European-wide research strategy to tackle neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease. This is the first of the new European Union (EU) Joint Programming Initiatives which are designed to address ‘grand challenges’ which cannot be tackled effectively and efficiently by any one Member State acting alone. Joint Programming Initiatives aim to confront these common challenges through publicly funded research, by bringing together researchers, existing research evidence and national funding bodies and by sharing tools, techniques and other resources more efficiently among Member States. Such efforts can make a substantial contribution to achieving the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy, which focuses on research and innovation as the key means of delivering both improved quality of life and new sources of growth.