Public health in a changing world – challenges, opportunities and collaboration in the Nordic countries

Deputy Director General Taru Koivisto from the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health highlighted Nordic cooperation and the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Vision 2030 in her plenary talk during the opening session. She also mentioned the Nordic Welfare Centre as a current and future platform for Nordic cooperation in public health.

The Nordic network for physical activity hosted a session on the economic costs of sedentary lifestyles, as well as disparities in physical activity across age groups, genders, and education levels. Positive examples of initiatives such as the Get Finland Moving program were highlighted. The session that attracted a large audience encouraged to interaction by asking participants to share a best practice to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour. The responses will be further explored by the network after the conference.

The Nordic Welfare Centre recently published the report Use of nicotine products among youth in the Nordic and Baltic countries – An overview. Stine Arp, who is one of the authors of the report, presented some of the findings at the conference and discussed the use of nicotine products among youth in the Nordic and Baltic countries. The trend is the same across the Nordic countries: the use of new nicotine products is increasing among young people, particularly the use of e-cigarettes and vapes. To reverse this rising trend, more preventive measures are needed at different levels. In this work, we can still learn from, inspire, and collaborate with one another across the Nordic and Baltic countries.

The Nordic Public Health Conference is an excellent forum for meeting, discussing and sharing work on current public health issues with Nordic colleagues, partners, and networks that are essential for Nordic cooperation in public health.

Current global challenges call for new solutions developed in collaboration, emphasising cross-sectoral and multidisciplinary approaches. We were encouraged to take a holistic view on public health including both economical, ethical and equitable considerations as highlighted in the closing statement by the Directors of the Nordic Public Health authorities. The public health team at the Nordic Welfare Centre will continue the work on these important topics and other public health related issues together with Nordic networks and partners. The 15th Nordic Public Health Conference will take place in Finland in 2028 with the Nordic Welfare Centre also participating.