February 21, 2023

NEAR’s new Steering Group

Willhelmina Hoffman, Björn Halleröd, Kaare Christensen, Luigi Ferrucci, Anne, W Ekdahl

NEAR has now entered phase 2.0, with a focus on consolidation and expansion. Due to that, a newly formed Steering Group has been appointed. The newly formed Steering Group consists of members with national and internationally recognized expertise in aging research and research infrastructures, as well as representatives of societal issues related to aging and user perspectives. The Steering Group oversees the strategic plan, budget, and steering documents.

On February 20, the newly formed Steering Group and adjunct members met via Zoom to get an introduction to NEAR and an update on current projects and future plans.

Steering Group Members:
Björn Halleröd , Chair, Professor in sociology, University of Gothenburg
Wilhelmina Hoffman , President of the Swedish Dementia Centre (SDC)
Anne Ekdahl, Senior lecturer, senior physician, specialist physician, Lund University
Luigi Ferrucci, Scientific Director of National Institute on Aging, USA
Kaare Christensen, Professor of epidemiology at the University of Southern Denmark

Associated members: Laura Fratiglioni, Lena Lewin, Debora Rizzuto, Davide Liborio Vetrano, Linnea Sjöberg

We look forward to continued work with the Steering Group!

More activities

June 1, 2026

Newly Appointed Steering Group

We are pleased to announce the appointment of a new NEAR Steering Group, effective from 26 May 2026 to 31 December 2029. The Steering Group brings together leading national and international expertise across geriatrics, epidemiology, psychology, and life sciences, reflecting NEAR’s interdisciplinary mission and global outlook. Kaare Christensen and Luigi Ferrucci remain on the Steering […]

March 24, 2026

Uppsala University is joining NEAR!

NEAR is happy to share that we are expanding to include Uppsala University and two additional databases: the Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men (ULSAM) and the Healthy Ageing Initiative (HAI). HAI is led by Peter Nordström and Anna Nordström, and ULSAM is also led by Peter Nordström. ULSAM is a population-based longitudinal cohort study […]

December 11, 2025

NEAR Partners with Spanish Seniors-Enrica study

As aging is a global phenomenon with challenges that transcend borders, NEAR views building strong international partnerships with similar research networks and studies as essential. Thus, we’re happy to announce our new partnership with the Spanish Seniors-Enrica study. What is Seniors-Enrica? Seniors-Enrica is a national study on nutrition and cardiovascular risk factors, featuring two cohorts: […]