European Public Health Conference 2025 (11–14 November 2025)

At the European Public Health 2025 conference in Helsinki, several sessions focused on loneliness, mental health, and system-level public health challenges across Europe. Key discussions addressed how to build effective networks to reduce loneliness, the importance of high-quality data, and the need for long-term, cross-sector strategies integrated into national wellbeing policies.

Initiatives such as , , and Participants’ Finland are just examples of evidence-based approaches ranging from nature-based interventions and digital storytelling to life-course strategies and policy engagement. Presentations also emphasized major health inequalities - particularly among people with severe mental illness - and the challenges of integrating physical and mental healthcare. Additional sessions examined trends in loneliness, protective factors across the life course, unmet mental health needs among young people, and the influence of psychosocial work environments on youth wellbeing.

Our group also contributed to the scientific programme: PhD Student Iiris Mankki presented her poster titled “Effectiveness of the Groups 4 Health Brief Psychosocial Intervention for Loneliness and Psychological Wellbeing: A Pilot Study on Finnish University Students”.

Overall, the conference underscored that loneliness and mental health are multifaceted public health issues requiring coordinated research–policy collaboration, culturally adaptable interventions, and sustained commitment across European health systems.