8-10 October: Alzheimer Europe holds its 34th Annual Conference #34AEC in Geneva
The 34th Alzheimer Europe Conference (#34AEC) “New horizons – Innovating for dementia” took place at the Centre International de Conférences Genève (CICG), between 8 and 10 October 2024, attracting 963 delegates from 42 European countries. On the agenda were over 400 presenters (150 presenters for oral presentations, another 100 quick oral presentations and 240 poster presentations), sharing their research, knowledge and experience in an atmosphere of true collaboration and solidarity.
Stefanie Becker, Director of Alzheimer Switzerland and Board Member of Alzheimer Europe, and Jean Georges, Executive Director of Alzheimer Europe, addressed delegates at the Opening Ceremony on the afternoon of 8 October.
Stefanie Becker began by saying “For decades, we’ve been waiting for a breakthrough in dementia treatment, and now, as these innovations emerge, they bring not only hope but also new challenges that people with dementia and their families are already facing”. She also noted that innovation is not just about breakthroughs in treatment, but rather it is also about “shifting social attitudes and embracing new technologies to create a truly dementia-inclusive society.” Innovation, therefore, also means finding better ways to support people in their daily lives, she affirmed. “Patient and carers’ organisations, like Alzheimer Switzerland, are at the forefront and will continue to advocate for everyone, ensuring that no one is left behind”, she said, emphasising that this is especially the case for those who may not meet the criteria for new treatments. Finally, she highlighted the importance of creating a society where the voices of people with dementia and their caregivers are heard, valued, and acted upon. “This is the foundation of a truly dementia-inclusive society”, she said.
Jean Georges extended a special welcome to the 37 people with dementia among the delegates, as well as to the 50 carers/supporters in attendance. He thanked Alzheimer Europe’s sponsors, including Gold sponsor Lilly, Silver sponsors Biogen, Novo Nordisk, Otsuka, and Terumo, and Bronze sponsors, BioArctic, Bristol Myers Squibb, MSD, Prothena and Roche, and expressed Alzheimer Europe’s gratitude to the CICG for hosting the event, as well as to the Geneva Convention Bureau, the République et Canton de Genève, and the Switzerland Convention & Incentive Bureau, for their support. Last, but certainly not least, he thanked colleagues at Alzheimer Switzerland and Alzheimer Geneva, for co-hosting the event.
Following these opening words, delegates were addressed by Salome von Greyerz, who welcomed delegates on behalf of the Swiss Federal Office for Public Health, noting that this year’s conference not only opens up new horizons, but also creates links that are vital for health care professionals, researchers and policy makers and, most importantly, for people with dementia and their caregivers.
A welcome video from Lukas Engelberger, Member of the Executive Council of the Canton of Basel-Stadt, and President of the Swiss Conference of the Cantonal Ministers of Public Health was screened next. You can view the video, here: https://youtu.be/GQ9IrzjPIp0. Pierre Maudet, State Councillor of the Republic and Canton of Geneva, then stepped up to the lectern, to warmly welcome delegates to Geneva.
The Opening Ceremony was rounded off by Marjolein de Vugt, who addressed delegates in her capacity as Chairperson of the INTERDEM (Early detection and timely INTERvention in DEMentia) network. She emphasised the power of small steps and ‘golden moments’ in dementia. “Dealing with dementia can feel like an insurmountable challenge”, she said, “but breaking it down into small, manageable steps leads to significant improvements in quality of life. These small, everyday victories often bring about ‘golden moments’ of connection and meaning, which are vital in dementia care.” She also stressed the importance of collaboration across psychosocial and biomedical approaches, due to the complexity of dementia, which requires diverse solutions. “Psychosocial innovations, risk reduction strategies, and medical advancements are all important. These approaches should complement each other, offering multiple paths toward a better future”, she stated. In closing, Marjolein de Vugt pointed to INTERDEM’s role in driving innovation, asserting that “as we celebrate 25 years of the INTERDEM network, it’s clear that collaboration is key in psychosocial innovations. By focusing on interventions that enhance resilience, cognitive and social health, and quality of life. INTERDEM embodies the spirit of innovation needed to improve the lives of people living with dementia.”
The first Plenary of the conference was a joint session organised by the members of the European Working Group of People with Dementia (EWGPWD) and the European Dementia Carers Working Group (EDCWG). This was chaired by Jean Georges. The two working groups had decided to focus on the interrelated topics of living with dementia, relationships and independence.
The different presentations provided a balanced overview of what life with dementia can be like, taking into account the very different experiences that people with dementia and carers across Europe may have. People who look at dementia from the outside may hold the view that living life to the full ends on diagnosis but the reality for many people is far removed from this perception. This plenary session set out to illustrate that many who live with dementia, and their carers, have a fierce and positive determination to enjoy themselves and play an active role in their communities. They seek not pity but support. They want empathy rather than sympathy. They require kindness and encouragement not dismissal or rejection.
Paddy Crosbie from Ireland, for example, remembered hearing the words ‘It’s young onset Alzheimer's’ and how he did not know how he’d cope, but he was also told to keep his husband doing what he could for as long as he could and this carried him through.
Trevor Salomon, a fellow carer from the UK, suggested, “It’s easy to see what people living with dementia can no longer do” and encouraged people with dementia and carers/supporters to focus on what is possible, and encourage them to do it. He provided an example of an employer who went to considerable lengths to adapt to the Trevor’s wife’s needs.
Liv Thorsen from Norway who cares for her husband described their philosophy to living with dementia, emphasising the power of thought and how the way that people think about Alzheimer’s disease affects their daily lives and to some extent their experience of dementia.
Shelagh Robinson, a person with dementia from the UK, took a close look at relationships that people with dementia have with others and the nature and quality of those relationships (i.e. whether they are abling or disabling, respectful, smothering or inclusive). She emphasised the importance of being kind to oneself and others, and in the context of spirituality, ended on a positive note with a quote from Julian of Norwich, “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well”.
Lieselotte (Lilo) Klotz from German shared her first thoughts on hearing her diagnosis, namely, “This can’t be, not me”, explaining that it was not part of her life plan and how she had not been able to accept for the first few years the many changes and losses she was experiencing. She ended, however, with the statement, “an ordinary day is the greatest blessing”.
At the end of the session, there was a short video presentation entitled “I may have Alzheimer’s disease, but it doesn’t have me”, which was recently developed by the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) and Alzheimer Europe. In this video, Chris Roberts, member and former Chairperson of the EWGPWD, talks about the importance of hope and of the timely detection of Alzheimer’s disease, adding that he is not defined by the disease. Watch the video, here: https://youtu.be/1cW92mf5J0o. Each of the five speakers with lived experience at this first plenary session received rapturous applause from the audience, as did the video.
To close day one of the conference, a Welcome Reception was held in the foyer of the CICG conference centre, from 18.30 to 20.00. The folk trio CORSIN entertained conference delegates, with René, the yodelling singer and spoon player, Gérald on the accordion and vocals, and Sylvain on the alphorn, saxophones, musical saw, and bell.
On 9 October, the day began with the second plenary of the conference which was on “Making dementia a priority” and was moderated by Charles Scerri (Malta). Margit Jochum Christin was the first speaker. Responsible for the specialist area “dementia” and co-responsible for the Coordination Centre of the National Dementia Platform at the Federal Office of Public Health, Switzerland, she gave a talk on dementia in Swiss health care policy. Katrin Seeher from the World Health Organization (WHO) Brain Health Unit then discussed key achievements of the WHO’s Global Action Plan on Dementia. The third speaker was Alex Gobey, Director of the Dementia Care Directorate in Malta, whose presentation focused on the National Dementia Strategy for the Maltese Islands 2024 – 2031, titled ‘Reaching New Heights’. The fourth and final speaker at this session was Giovanni Frisoni, Clinical neurologist, full professor of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and director of the Memory Center at Geneva University Hospital, with a presentation about the Swiss Brain Health Plan.
In the afternoon, the third plenary covered topics related to innovation in dementia care. The session was moderated by Marjolein de Vugt (Netherlands), and the first speaker, Tobias Nef, delivered a presentation titled “Digital Biomarkers to support dementia patients and their caregivers”. He is a Full Professor of Gerontechnology and Rehabilitation at the ARTORG Research Center for Biomedical Engineering and the Department of Neurology at the University of Bern, Switzerland. The next speaker was Esther Loseto-Gerritzen from the Institute of Mental Health at the University of Nottingham, United Kingdom, who discussed online peer support for people with Young Onset Dementia. Then, a talk by Aisling Flynn, Lecturer in Occupational Therapy, Bournemouth University, United Kingdom, centred on virtual reality as a means of promoting the social connectedness of people living with dementia and their supporters. The fourth and final speaker was Lizzy Boots from the Alzheimer Center Limburg/Maastricht University, Netherlands, with her presentation, “From research and development to implementation - the Evaluation in Life Cycle of Information Technology (ELICIT) framework”.
Plenary four opened the conference programme on the third and final day, and comprised four presentations revolving around the theme of intersectionality. It was chaired by Maria do Rosário Zincke dos Reis (Portugal). She opened the session, introducing first a short video, before the presentations. The video summarised the journey of dementia researcher Golnaz Atefi, who, during World Alzheimer’s Month (September) this year, skated 1,026 km, setting the Guinness World Record for the farthest distance ever skated by a female, as part of the awareness-raising "Rolling for Dementia" campaign. Golnaz's mission was to engage with professionals and community members across Europe, finishing at the Alzheimer Europe Conference, to highlight the critical need for inclusivity in dementia care and research. Alzheimer Europe was pleased to support this amazing campaign. The video can be viewed, here: https://youtu.be/nJcHHTlJz4Y
After this short video, the first speaker was welcomed to the stage. Antonella Santuccione Chadha, Founder of the Women’s Brain Foundation, Vice President of Euresearch, and former regulator and pharma executive, spoke about the importance of gender in dementia research. The second speaker at this plenary session was T. Rune Nielsen, Associate Professor, PhD, Danish Dementia Research Centre, Copenhagen University Hospital & Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. His talk was on reaching out to and including minority ethnic groups in dementia research. Next to take the floor was John Angel Bond, a dedicated PhD researcher in dementia studies at the University of Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom and a committed member of the LGBTQ+ Dementia Advisory Group. He introduced his presentation "Queering Up Dementia Care: The Next Steps" and stressed that this was very much a joint effort together with Mike Parish from the LGBTQ+ Dementia Advisory Group. The final speaker was Eimear McGlinchey, Assistant Professor in Intellectual Disability, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland and Faculty at the Global Brain Health Institute. She discussed the link between Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s disease.
The fifth plenary session at the conference was on the topic of “Brain health and prevention” and was moderated by Giovanni Frisoni (Switzerland). Kicking off the session, the first speaker was Daniela S. Jopp, Professor of Psychology, whose work at the Institute of Psychology and LIVES Center of Competence on Life-span, University of Lausanne, focuses on adult development and ageing. Her presentation was called “Healthy ageing – is it possible to escape dementia?”. Next was Jean-Charles Lambert, PhD, Inserm Research Director, Head of the team "Search for molecular determinants of Alzheimer's disease and related disorders" at the Université de Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, France. His talk centred on the question “When does dementia become inescapable?” and explored the role of genetics. Ira Haraldsen, MD, PhD, from the Department of Neurology at Oslo University Hospital, Norway spoke next, sharing results from the AI-Mind project, of which she is the coordinator. Finally, Bogdan Draganski, Professor at the Neurozentrum – Inselspital, University of Bern, Switzerland, discussed new preventative approaches for vascular dementia.
The closing ceremony of the conference included comments from Maria do Rosário Zincke dos Reis, in her capacity as our Chairperson. She took the opportunity to thank all of the delegates and speakers “for making these three days such a fantastic time by sharing experiences and knowledge from different perspectives as people with dementia, carers, researchers, healthcare and social professionals. Different perspectives but with a common goal: To improve the quality of life of people with dementia and carers.” She also thanked all of our corporate sponsors, the Alzheimer Europe team for all the hard work in making the conference happen, and of course our co-hosts Alzheimer Switzerland. Hans Stöckli, President of Alzheimer Switzerland expressed gratitude for the support provided by Swiss partners and especially the CICG conference centre for providing us with free rental and audio-visual support. He also gave a big thanks to the Swiss institutional speakers who spoke at the opening ceremony on Tuesday and finally, thanked the translators and all the local staff for their help and support. Mario Possenti, Secretary General of Federazione Alzheimer Italia, then took to the stage to invite delegates to the 35th Alzheimer Europe Conference, “Connecting science and communities: The future of dementia care”, taking place in Bologna, Italy, from 6-8 October 2025. Save the dates!
