EUROPEAN YEAR 2012 : ACTIVE AGEING AND SOLIDARITY IN LIMELIGHT.

The start of a new year also spells the start of a new European theme: indeed, 1 January 2012 marked the transition from the European Year of Volunteering to the European Year of Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations (Decision 940/2011/EU). This transfer will be made official on 18-19 January in Copenhagen, Denmark, during an opening conference on innovation in the context of an ageing European society. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), active ageing means optimising opportunities in terms of health, participation and safety in order to improve the quality of life.

The aim of this thematic year is to inform, promote good practice and encourage policy makers and stakeholders to facilitate active ageing at all levels. The website on the European Year 2012 calls on the EU to support these objectives in several fields of action, namely employment, public health, information society, transport and...