Policy Area Health

Resilient societies depend on people’s physical, mental and social well-being. Across the region, rising mental distress and loneliness, particularly among young people, older adults and those affected by conflict, add to the burden of chronic diseases that are largely preventable. Climate change increases these risks, and the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have shown how quickly systems can become overstretched and how unevenly communities recover.

We support approaches that help people stay well and cope with crises, including community health promotion, arts and culture for well-being, and the prevention of risky health behaviours. By bringing together actors from health, education, labour, culture and civil protection, we help make well-being part of preparedness planning, drawing on lessons from crisis-affected areas such as Ukraine. In the long term, this work aims to improve mental well-being, reduce preventable disease and help communities withstand future shocks.

Health and social services across the region face workforce shortages, tight budgets and growing demand, and many of the factors that affect health are handled in other sectors. The region has strong traditions in social innovation, workplace well-being, substance use policy and community health promotion, but these strengths are unevenly spread. Emerging risks, such as new psychoactive substances and the health effects of environmental crises, call for closer cooperation.

We help authorities, civil society and service providers learn from each other and work across sectors, so that strategies for education, labour, culture, youth and climate take health into account. This includes scaling up successful models such as Arts on Prescription, prevention in the workplace and healthy ageing, and supporting alcohol, tobacco and substance use policies that anticipate new risks. Cooperation with Ukraine adds valuable experience in resilience during crises. The aim is stronger institutions that can prevent illness, reduce inequalities and respond to new challenges.