About HANNN

Healthy Ageing Network Northern Netherlands (HANNN), is committed to more healthy years for all inhabitants of the Northern Netherlands, young and old. How do we create an environment that makes it easier to live a healthy life? Based on this question, together with our network of partners who can contribute to a healthier region, we are building an environment that promotes health.
The ambition of building together an environment that promotes health provides an individual and collective perspective for Healthy Ageing. We look at social developments and are able to create innovative solutions. We start from a positive approach that inspires: a longer, more vital and happier life with personal control in a pleasant living environment.

The Northern-Netherlands region leads the pack in Europe when it comes to Healthy Ageing, according to the European Commission. On Wednesday 13 July 2016 it presented a ranking of European Reference Regions in the field of Active and Healthy Ageing. No less than 78 regions from 22 Member States sent in an application to be on the list on which ranking is determined by the number of stars awarded. The Northern-Netherlands -under the leadership of the Healthy Ageing Network Northern-Netherlands (HANNN)- achieved the highest possible score of 4 stars, an honor bestowed upon only a very select group of Reference Sites. This recognition of excellence in Healthy Ageing in the Northern-Netherlands creates exposure and collaboration opportunities for its knowledge institutes and companies, making it easier to export innovations in the area of healthy and active ageing. The Northern-Netherlands is the only Dutch region to receive the coveted four-star status.

The four stars are a result of a thorough process in which regions are regularly checked and reassessed. The grading system resembles the Michelin star ratings for restaurants. The new rating replaces the first Reference Site designations made in 2013, during which the Northern Netherlands received the then-highest score of two times three stars. The new four star rating is even more unique.

“This year the European Commission raised the bar even higher because we had to prove that with our activities a larger part of the population could be reached. I am proud that we have been able to achieve this, and that the European Commission has confirmed that the Northern-Netherlands made the right choice in focusing on Healthy Ageing as its main theme. The maximum score confirms what we already knew to be true: when it comes to innovation in Healthy Ageing, there is no better place to turn to than the Northern Netherlands.” (Daan Bultje, director of HANNN from 2014 until 2023).

The status is not just a recognition of past achievements of the Northern-Netherlands, but also creates expectations for the future as Reference sites are increasingly important to the European Commission. Bultje continues: "For the Northern Netherlands, this means that healthcare innovations developed here have a better chance of being successfully adopted and scaled up throughout Europe. This presents great opportunities for small and medium enterprises to spread their wings internationally. With this status they can prove that their services and products are embedded in a region which delivers cutting edge innovation in the field of healthy ageing. In this regard, our award is not just an achievement for the region but for the whole of the Netherlands."

Also in 2022, HANNN was able to pick up the four stars in Brussels for the fourth time in a row. This time, HANNN and Hi!Noord had joined forces to put the Northern Netherlands on the map in the field of Healthy Ageing. 

During the years, HANNN has participated in various European projects and partnerships. In different roles and with a variety of topics. Some examples are shown below.

HeaLIQs4Cities is one of the EIT Health projects enhancing healthier lives of European citizens. For the first time the Healthy Living Room is mobile, hitting the road on 4 September 2019.
The project Healthy Lifestyle Innovation Quarters for Cities and Citizens (HeaLIQs4cities), funded by EIT Health, invites citizens into the Healthy Living Room. An open, approachable setting where they can learn about healthy living by engaging in lifestyle assessments, testing innovative products and getting involved in community programmes. While in 2018 the open spaces were set up at public events, such as “fun runs”, for 2019 the Healthy Living Room takes to the road, in a bus. HeaLIQs4cities will promote healthy lifestyles in the neighborhoods of Groningen (The Netherlands), Coimbra (Portugal) and in Andalucia (Spain), regions considered as Reference Sites for Active and Healthy Ageing by the European Commission.
Project partners: Portugal, Spain, Netherlands.

Dementia in Cultural Mediation (DCUM project) is a transnational project, within the framework of the European Erasmus+ programma, motivated by the increasing number of people suffering from dementia in Europe. The project is based on the great potential in the use of culture and cultural activities as a new approach to create social inclusion and increased joy of life of people with dementia in local communities.
To achieve this, DCUM projects seeks to improve the competencies and skills of cultural mediators who work with or have a relationship with cultural institutions (such as libraries, museums and social organisations) where there is interest in organising cultural activities for people living with dementia. The core product of the DCUM project is the open-source digital toolkit, developed by the project partners. This toolkit contains methods, tools and training material for cultural mediation and acitivties aimed at people living with dementia (presentational and instructional videos, pictures, and written guides to support the use of each method).
Project partners: Denmark, Netherlands, België, Spain.

The Embracing Dementia (EDEN) Project, an EU project supported by the ERASMUS+ programme, was born from the interest of having a common European approach to one of the social challenges on the horizon, such as the growing number of people with Alzheimer's and other types of brain related diseases in the region.
The main objective of the EDEN project is to create increased awareness of the importance of relatives’ role in the care of family members living with dementia, and a closer collaboration on local level between the relevant local stakeholders. The EDEN project wants to change the approach of the care of citizens living with dementia from a challenge for each individual family towards a common community challenge. On the unique EDEN platform we have created a collection of materials that support relatives to cope with this challenge and be supported when taking care of their loved ones that live with dementia.
Project partners: Spain, Denmark, Netherlands, Italy, United Kingdom.

When the Covid pandemic shut down face-to-face meetings between municipal staff and citizens in favour of online alternatives, a certain group of citizens proved to have major problems with digital tools. Older and vulnerable citizens in rural areas were particularly disadvantaged when it came to online contact and digital health services. On the one hand, they did not have usable IT equipment and, on the other, they did not have the necessary digital skills. The shutdown thus clearly showed that increased adoption of digital health solutions risks leading to inequality, less social cohesion and exclusion of a large population group, particularly in rural areas. It is this problem that has led to the Rural eHealth Facilitators (REACT) project, an EU project supported by the ERASMUS+ programme.
The project aims to tackle digital exclusion in rural areas and brings together partners to explore how we can empower older and vulnerable citizens to use digital health services. This will be done by training volunteer e-health faciltators to show older and vulnerable citizens how to use digital solutions and motivate them to do so.
Project partners: Denmark, Portugal, France, Netherlands

IC-Health is a Horizon2020 project to develop a series of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS) to help improve the digital health literacy of EU citizens.
Citizens’ digital health literacy is an essential element for successful eHealth deployment. However, citizens often do not have the necessary skills to find, understand and evaluate online health information and apply their knowledge to make health decisions. Digitally health literate citizens are empowered to play a more active role in their health self-management, adherence to a healthier lifestyle and better health outcomes.
The project will design 35 open access online courses (MOOCs), in seven different national languages, for different population cohorts including children, adolescents, pregnant and lactating women, elderly 60+ and people affected by type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The MOOCS will be developed in eight languages (English, French, Italian, Danish, German, Swedish, Dutch and Spanish). Countries involved in the pilot are Spain, Italy, Belgium, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Denmark.

The Northern Netherlands is one of the partners in the InnoLife consortium. A consortium of more than 50 core partners (and in addition 90 associate organisations) of leading businesses, research centres and universities from 9 EU countries, has been selected by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) as the Knowledge and Innovation Community (KIC) for EIT Health. With a total volume of EUR 2,100 million it is one of the largest public funded initiatives for health worldwide. InnoLife’s mission is to promote entrepreneurship and develop innovations in healthy living and active ageing, providing Europe with new opportunities and resources.
The activities within the EIT HEALTH are spreading all over Europe and will allow HANNN to establish new ties to expand innovation and growth.