Folkhälsan recruits external top researchers to its Research Committee
Professor Miia Kivipelto and Professor Olli Kallioniemi have been appointed as external members of the Folkhälsan Research Committee. The task of the research committee is to prepare important matters related to the Folkhälsan Research Center, such as the establishment of new research programs, for the board of Samfundet Folkhälsan to decide on.
Folkhälsan has recruited two external top researchers to its newly established Research Committee.
One of them is Miia Kivipelto, professor of clinical geriatrics at the Karolinska Institute, senior geriatrician, and director for research and development of Theme Aging at Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm and professor of neurogeriatrics at the University of Eastern Finland. She leads the Nordic-UK-US Brain Network and the World-Wide FINGERS network, and also serves as professor at Imperial College London and Yale University. Her research focuses particularly on lifestyle-related risk factors for cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as the development and implementation of preventive interventions, with a focus on brain health.
– I am very pleased about the opportunity to work with Folkhälsan’s research initiatives. Brain health is a major issue in today’s society, and we now have new opportunities to optimize brain health throughout life and prevent cognitive decline. Finnish brain research is at the global forefront, and Folkhälsan’s new strategy offers excellent opportunities for new research and implementation that benefit individuals throughout life as well as society at large. We know that it is never too early to start prevention, but it is never too late either, says Miia Kivipelto.
The other is professor Olli Kallioniemi, research director at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) and a professor of molecular precision medicine at the Karolinska Institute. He has a long and distinguished career in biomedical research and scientific leadership. After serving as the director of Sweden’s national life science infrastructure SciLifeLab, he returned to Finland in 2025. At FIMM in Helsinki, he leads research on data- and AI-driven molecular medicine as well as precision medicine in cancer treatment. He has extensive experience in building and leading research organizations and in broad international collaborations.
– Genetic research, health data, and analysis with artificial intelligence provide new opportunities to understand diseases and develop better prevention and treatment. I look forward to helping to ensure that research results can be translated into concrete benefits for people’s health, says Olli Kallioniemi.
The appointment of Kivipelto and Kallioniemi to the Research Committee is an important step in implementing Folkhälsan’s new strategy, with a focus on brain health at critical stages of life.
– This is fantastic news. I am so happy that both Miia Kivipelto and Olli Kallioniemi, with their respective expertise, knowledge, and broad international networks, want to contribute to Folkhälsan’s work to promote health as well as to the development of the Folkhälsan Research Center. I look forward to an inspiring collaboration, says Folkhälsan’s CEO Anna Hellerstedt.
The other members of the Folkhälsan Research Committee are Siv Sandberg (chair), Tom Böhling, and Kristian Wahlbeck. The presenter is Folkhälsan’s Research Director, Anna-Elina Lehesjoki. The committee will begin its work shortly.
