16 Longevity Scientists Have a Valentine's Day Message for the World: Announcing the Academy for Health and Lifespan Research

BOSTON, FEBRUARY 13 – A group of leading scientists devoted to research on the mechanisms of biological aging today announced the formation of the Academy for Health and Lifespan, the first global non-profit group focused on accelerating breakthroughs in the expansion of the human health span. The timing of the announcement aligns with the Valentine’s Day holiday to call attention to the Academy for Health and Lifespan Research mission to enable people to live better and love longer.

The Academy’s mission is to set the public stage for the transformation society must make, as health span extension means a growing population fully able to live healthier lives longer. The group’s plan is to accomplish its goals through awareness and education, by giving new research a platform for dissemination, and by organizing conferences and forums where the world’s leaders in the study of health span and longevity will gather and share research and insights.  Ultimately, the Academy will provide grants to fund promising research from established and emerging scientists. 

“We believe we are at a threshold moment in the research of age-related decline, which is the timing that inspired the creation of the Academy,” said David Setboun, chair and president of the new Academy for Health and Lifespan Research. “Our shared belief is that science shows that we can age later.” The complete list of Founders is attached.

 “The Academy is a think tank seeking to speed the rate of discoveries to expand our health spans,” he continued.  “Our 16 founders are among the leading geroscientists in the world. In addition to raising awareness of research advances among the general public, we will encourage increased public and private investment in health span and longevity research throughout the globe.” 

The Academy’s 4C Mission

The Academy embraces a 4C MISSION: First to catalyze the world’s ongoing research to accelerate the development of life-changing enhancements of healthy aging. Second to connect our founders to each other through the auspices of the academy. The third C: Convene experts and authorities around the world to advance their missions and that of the Academy’s in public and private settings. Finally, we shall communicate with the public at large to educate them about this new generation of health span and longevity research, what it means and what it doesn’t mean, and to engage in constructive conversations.

“As founders of AHLR, we believe that, as the field rapidly advances, we must help bridge the gap between science and public understanding,” said founding member Judith Campisi, PhD, Buck Institute. “We believe that while death is inevitable, aging need not be.” This is important at the personal level and for our culture. Health care costs are coupled with the economic impact of society’s loss of productivity from years of declining vigor.  We want to play the seminal role of bringing health span and longevity breakthroughs and their social implications to the attention of the public and governments throughout the world.”

Start-up funding for the non-profit, a 501-C3 organization, has come from companies, family trusts and individuals excited by the potential and social implications of health and lifespan expansion. The Academy’s initial founders (full list and affiliations attached) will be augmented by a growing roster of global longevity researchers as new members join. 

The first Academy conference takes place July 30 and 31 in Paris, convening to share results of new studies, recently published papers and areas of common inquiry. While coming from various disciplines and engaged in disparate approaches, the shared work of our world-renowned membership will be directed to the reduction and reversal of the wide range of age-related declines in health that currently limit the productivity and happiness of increasingly large proportions of the world’s population.

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The Academy for Health and Lifespan Research (AHLR) is the first global non-profit organization with a mission to accelerate breakthroughs in the expansion of the human health span. The Academy is comprised of world-renowned researchers working to reduce and reverse Age-Related Decline (ARD). The Academy embraces a 4C MISSION: First to catalyze the world’s ongoing research to accelerate the development of life-changing treatments and therapies, then to connect its founders to each other and to a broader international community. The third C: Convene experts and authorities around the world to advance their missions, and the academy’s, in public and private settings. Finally, to communicate with the public at large to educate them about this new generation of health span and longevity research, what it means and what it doesn’t, and re-frame the conversation. For more information please go to: www.ahlresearch.org, @ahlresearch, or info@ahlresearch.org.