16. Oktober 2012, 15:00-18:00 Uhr

Europäisches Parlament
60 Rue Wiertz
1047 Brüssel

Main goals:

1. to share the outcomes of the AAL JP following five years of stimulating innovation in the field of ICT for ageing, resulting in SMEs and other organizations building new supply chains and collaborations.
2. to illustrate the advantages of a follow-up Joint Programme across Europe for the period 2014-2020 and explore how we could stimulate economic growth whilst improving the quality of life of EU citizens.

The most important achievement of the AAL JP so far has been the supply chains that have been built and consolidated across this emerging sector, connecting SMEs and other organisations with new suppliers and customers.  The AAL JP is well positioned to drive opportunities for economic growth across Europe that the demographic shift represents and has had other significant achievements.

Building on the extensive work and joint efforts to date which have established this success story, the AALA is working to develop a follow-up for the joint programme – beyond 2013.  All future activities will take account of the evolution of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing (EIP AHA) and Horizon 2020.

In this context, it is worth mentioning that the AAL JP addresses the three priorities of Horizon 2020 “A European strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth”.  Our activities are also directly aligned with at least two initiatives under the same strategy, namely “Innovation Union” to refocus R&D and innovation policy on major challenges, such as health and demographic change, and the “Digital Agenda for Europe”.

More about the programme:

The Ambient Assisted Living Joint Programme (AAL JP) is a funding activity running from 2008 to 2013, with the aim of enhancing the quality of life of older people and strengthening the industrial base in Europe through the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Therefore, the AAL JP is an activity that operates in the field of services and actions to enable the active ageing among the population.

The programme is financed by the European Commission and the 23 Countries that constitute the Partner States of this Joint Programme: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

The overall budget is of € 700 Mil to co-finance Research & Development & Innovation projects aiming to deliver concrete solutions for independent living or ‘ageing well’ of elderly people using ICT. This funding activity is implemented by the AAL Association and the funding authorities of its member countries.

Every year a call for proposal is launched . Through the funding of new projects, the AAL JP aims to reinforce the European market for Ambient Assisted Living products and services.

• The AAL JP aims to combine social, technological and business aspects to deliver:
• New models of service delivery and care that contribute to greater self-reliance for older adults and greater support for informal carers;
• Adapted living spaces that can improve the quality of their everyday lives;
• New ways for older people to remain active, including contributing as volunteers or providing mutual support;
• New ways of mobilising active and trusted networks, both formal and informal, professional and in kind, to provide all types of support.