The Division of Prevention and Health Promotion of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, the WHO Collaborating Centre at Université Côte d’Azur, and Ulysseus European University are now accepting applications for the 2027 summer school “Systems thinking and innovation for the prevention of noncommunicable diseases and a healthy ageing population in the WHO European Region”.
The summer school explores the theory and use of systems thinking and systems-based approaches to tackle the complex challenges of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and their risk factors. Its aim is to build participants’ capacity and expertise in the application of systems-based methods for problem-solving and innovation, and to translate these methods into practical strategies that advance NCD prevention and promote healthy ageing. Participants can expect a combination of interactive learning, hands-on exercises and project-based work, including the opportunity to apply systems-thinking approaches to their own projects, ensuring that learning is directly relevant to their professional context.
The school will support participants to:
- understand systems-thinking theory, techniques and tools;
- acquire the ability to identify and analyse key problems related to NCD prevention and healthy ageing, ensuring that their solutions are rooted in user needs and aspirations;
- innovate to address challenges in NCD prevention and healthy ageing;
- identify common patterns in complex systems and how to mitigate them to implement policies and strategies more effectively; and
- develop skills to transfer research into policy.
The summer school is designed for PhD students and early and mid-career professionals, including researchers, postgraduate students, health practitioners and policy-makers interested in applying systems thinking and systems-based approaches to advance evidence-based policies, strengthen multisectoral collaboration and improve policy implementation through innovation.
Course information
- Location: Nice, France
- Date: 09:00, 20 July 2027, to 14:00, 23 July 2027
- Delivery: In-person (30 participants), English language
- Methods: Key-note presentations, lectures, workshops and practical training using real-life scenarios.
- Faculty: WHO experts and leading international experts in systems thinking, NCD prevention and control, healthy ageing, public health innovation and multistakeholder engagement.
- Qualification: A certificate of participation will be provided.
Curriculum
The curriculum is currently being finalized but will cover topics including:
- systems-thinking concepts and methods for NCD prevention and control
- identifying systems archetypes and developing policy scenarios
- systems-thinking tools in practice
- creating systems-thinking informed studies
- practical training on the use of decision-making tools
- policy innovation in public health
- AI opportunity for public health
- innovation ecosystems.
Financial information
- The summer school will be provided free of charge, including lunch and coffee breaks on each day and a welcome dinner on 21 July 2027.
- Applicants will need to cover their own travel expenses, accommodation and any other costs related to their stay in Nice.
Application process
Applications must be submitted no later than 23 November 2026:
Applications will be reviewed by a selection panel. Successful applicants will be informed by 18 December 2026.
Selection criteria
Relevant professional experience in public health, innovation, healthy ageing and NCD prevention, or NCD risk factors; education; experience; personal statement; and potential for future collaboration.
Background
The WHO European Region continues to face a considerable burden from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). NCDs are the leading cause of death and disability in the Region and account for more than 80% of all deaths. One in five men and one in 10 women in the Region die before the age of 70 from major NCDs, including cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases.
Approximately 1.8 million avoidable deaths from NCDs occur each year in the Region. Around 60% are associated with preventable risk factors and could be avoided through effective public health interventions, and 40% are considered treatable through timely access to high-quality health services.
Progress has been made, and mortality from several NCDs and risk factors has declined over time. However, the pace of progress remains insufficient to meet many agreed global targets, and recent years have brought significant setbacks.
Some risk factors are also moving in the wrong direction. WHO/Europe estimates that almost 60% of adults in the Region live with overweight or obesity, as do approximately one in three school-aged children. Obesity is influenced by wider food, economic, social, commercial and physical environments.
Insufficient physical activity remains a concern, and tobacco and alcohol continue to contribute substantially to premature mortality.
The economic consequences are considerable. Annual productivity losses associated with avoidable NCD mortality are estimated at approximately US$ 514 billion. NCD prevention is not only a health issue; it is also relevant to economies, workplaces, communities, social protection and sustainable development.
Population ageing, demographic change, urbanization, technological developments, environmental pressures, changing food and commercial environments, and economic uncertainty are creating both opportunities and challenges for public health. These changes are interconnected. The challenge is to understand how these changes interact and how health systems and societies can adapt.
The Region has considerable evidence on the factors contributing to NCDs and on interventions that can help prevent and control them. However, translating this knowledge into sustained, equitable and effective action remains difficult.
Why systems thinking?
Many of today’s most difficult public health problems cannot be fully understood by examining individual factors separately. A systems perspective considers how different factors interact and how these interactions influence outcomes over time.
Systems thinking is a way of understanding how people, institutions, policies, organizations, environments, resources, technologies, behaviours and relationships interact. These elements do not operate independently, and their relationships can change over time.
For example:
food environments → food availability → consumer choices → dietary patterns → obesity → demand for health services → economic consequences
This relationship is shaped by many other factors. Economic conditions can affect food prices. Commercial actors can influence product availability and marketing. Government policies can shape regulation. Demand for health services can influence public priorities. Social norms can affect consumption. These interactions can strengthen or weaken over time.
NCD prevention is therefore a particularly relevant area for applying systems thinking. Its determinants are interconnected, and responsibility for prevention is distributed across governments, health systems, municipalities, schools, workplaces, researchers, communities, civil society and other relevant actors. It is therefore important to understand how their actions interact.
WHO/Europe has identified the need to strengthen understanding of, and practical capacity in, systems thinking. Although systems approaches have considerable potential, their use in NCD prevention remains limited. There is a need to develop the skills required to integrate systems thinking into policy processes and practical applications.