The 2015-2017 framework programme of Alzheimer Europe aims to achieve the following objectives:
1. Increasing knowledge about current national dementia policies and strategies, in order to promote best practices and reduce inequalities in dementia care in Europe (dementia-friendly communities, legal capacity and proxy decision making, care standards and care services for people with dementia and their carers),
2. Promoting collaboration and exchange on ethical issues linked to dementia through the organisation's European Dementia Ethics Network (Ethical challenges faced by professional carers, the changing definition of Alzheimer's disease and disclosure of risk information, societal obligations to people with dementia and their carers),
3. Improving the involvement of people with dementia in EU activities through the active consultation and involvement of the European Working Group of People with Dementia,
4. Improving the information exchange on dementia through the setting up of a European Dementia Observatory and the organisation of an Annual Conference,
5. Capacity building for national Alzheimer associations via the organisation of an Alzheimer Association Academy,
6. Ensuring effective governance.

The organisation's activities are fully aligned with the European Commission Communication on a European initiative on Alzheimer's disease and other dementias which recognised that "the importance of these conditions has long been recogned at a European level has long been recognised at a European level" and will provide important support to the growing number of Member States that are implementing or developing national dementia strategies. The work plan also addresses the priority identified in the third health programme of "support[ing] cooperation and networking in the Union in relation to ]...] improving the response to chronic diseases including [...] neurodegenerative diseases, by sharing knowledge, good practices and developing joint activities.


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The key objectives of AE's 2016 activities are as follows:
1. Increasing knowledge about current national dementia policies in order to promote best practices and reduce existing inequalities in dementia care in Europe
2. Promoting collaboration and exchange on ethical issues linked to dementia
3. Improving the involvement of people with dementia in EU activities
4. Improving the information exchange on dementia through the setting up of a European Dementia Observatory and the organisation of an Annual Conference
5. Capacity building for national Alzheimer associations
6. Ensuring effective governance
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As part of its 2018 operating grant, Alzheimer Europe will aim to:
- Provide a voice to people with dementia by carrying out an inventory and analysis of existing working groups of people with dementia, their membership, working methods and findings and producing a report with the findings and identified good practices
- Make dementia a European priority by comparing and analysing differences and commonalities contained in the priority actions and themes of national dementia strategies and providing a comparative report with the key findings
- Promote a rights-based approach to dementia by identifying the issues faced by people with dementia, carers and professional carers coming from ethnic, cultural and religious minorities as the priority of its European Dementia Ethics Network, carrying out an extensive literature review and analysis of existing initiatives on this subject and producing a report with the key findings and recommendations
- Support dementia research by developing an online database of phase II and phase III clinical trials on Alzheimer's disease and dementia, by continuing the development of its European Dementia Observatory and by organising a conference in Barcelona from 27-29 October with at least 500 participants from 30 European countries
- Strengthen the European dementia movement by carrying out a mapping exercise of organisations with an interest in dementia, developing a networking strategy and by organising the Alzheimer's Association Academy with capacity-building workshops for its national member organisations.
The activities undertaken as part of Alzheimer Europe’s 2018 Work Plan are fully aligned with key EU programmes and respond to the calls made by successive EU Presidencies for greater European collaboration on dementia. In particular, the organisation will ensure to respond to the detailed 2015 Council conclusions and support the work of the 2nd Joint Action on dementia and the Group of governmental experts on dementia.


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In 2019, AE will:
• Ensure that the voices of people with dementia are duly included in all operating grant activities by involving its European Working Group of People with Dementia, organise at least three meetings of the group and collaborate closely with the 2nd Joint Action on Dementia and develop recommendations on dementia-friendly and dementia-inclusive initiatives
• Collect information on epidemiological studies carried out in European countries looking at the incidence and prevalence of MCI, AD and dementia, carry out a meta-analysis, calculate the estimated numbers of people with dementia in all Member States of the European Union c and publish a report of these findings in the 2019 edition of the Alzheimer Europe Yearbook.
• Identify the issues faced by people with dementia when participating in research as the priority of its European Dementia Ethics Network and carry out an extensive literature review on this subject, develop recommendations to promote a human rights based approach to the involvement of people with dementia in research and publish the recommendations with the findings of the literature review in a report.
• Continue with the development of its European Dementia Observatory, organise a conference in The Hague, Netherlands under the motto “Making valuable connections” from 22-25 October 2019 with the participation of at least 750 participants from 30 European countries and carry out an invetory of European and national treatment and management guidelines for dementia.
• Carry out a mapping exercise of its national organisations to understand their membership, staffing, funding as well as their activities and services and bring together representatives of the national Alzheimer associations for three networking meetings of the Alzheimer’s Association Academy.
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Alzheimer Europe outlined five strategic priorities in its framework partnership (2018- 2021). For the 2021 Work Plan, the following specific objectives can be outlined for each of the five priorities:
1. Providing a voice to people with dementia
In 2021, AE will build on its successful involvement activities in the previous years thanks to its dynamic and impactful European Working Group of People with Dementia bringing together 12 people with dementia from 12 different organisations and:
• Continue to ensure that the voices of people with dementia are duly included in all operating grant activities by involving its European Working Group of People with Dementia
• Organise four meetings of the group and provide a forum for people with dementia at the organisation’s Annual Conference in Bucharest
• Carry out an analysis of public and patient involvement experiences of people with dementia in EU funded projects.
2. Making dementia a European priority, supporting the development of dementia strategies and promoting dementia-friendly initiatives
In 2021, AE will build on its close collaboration with national health ministry officials and, after focusing on national dementia strategies (2018), the prevalence of dementia in Europe (2019) and training and continuing education programmes for healthcare professionals (2020), AE will:
• Coordinate and provide the secretariat for the European Group of Governmental Experts on Dementia and organise two meetings of the group to share national experiences and good practices on topics identified by national health ministry officials
• Continue to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the situation of people with dementia and their carers and develop recommendations to promote and protect their needs in pandemic strategies and policies
• Collect information on existing dementia-friendly initiatives and identify how recommendations from the 2nd Joint Action on Dementia and the European Working Group of People with Dementia have been implemented
• Develop a comparative report on national dementia-friendly initiatives and publish the findings in the 2021 Dementia in Europe Yearbook.
3. Promoting a rights-based approach to gender, sex and sexuality in dementia
In 2021, after focusing on the situation of people with dementia and carers from minority ethnic groups (2018), the participation of people with dementia in research (2019) and the ethical implications of legal capacity and decision making (2020), AE will:
• Explore ethical issues related to sex, gender and sexuality and their impact on the experience of living with dementia and caring for someone with dementia and carry out a review of scientific publications and grey literature on these subjects
• Bring together a working group with experts on ethics, human rights, sex, gender and sexuality to discuss the findings of the review and develop recommendations
• Publish the recommendations with the findings of the literature review in a report.
4. Supporting dementia research and organising an Annual Conference
In 2021, AE will continue with the development of its European Dementia Observatory which provides an important platform for researchers to present the aims and outcomes of research projects via AE’s website, newsletter, social media and conferences. After focusing on developing an inventory of clinical trials (2018), treatment guidelines (2019) and EU-funded research projects (2020), as well as organising successful Annual Conferences in Barcelona (2018) with 814 participants and The Hague (2019) with 981 participants and a virtual conference in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, AE will:
• Closely follow and report on scientific and policy developments in the field of dementia in its monthly e-mail newsletter, its website and via social media
• Organise the postponed conference from 2020 in Bucharest, Romania under the motto “Building bridges” from 29 November to 1 December with at least 500 p
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