The Kuopio Alzheimer Symposium has been organised since 1999. The symposium has a stellar reputation as a scientific event with a rich program and internationally acknowledged speakers. This year, the Nordic Memory Clinic Conference also coincided with the symposium.

The event focused on health sciences and existing and emerging concepts in neurodegeneration and genetic and personalised medicine in Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases. We had more than 300 participants in person and around 50 more online.

With events such as this, the catering means a great deal for the overall experience. We also wanted to introduce regional flavours to honour Kuopio’s nomination as the European Region of Gastronomy for 2020–2021.

Based on the feedback, our participants appreciated the top-tier program and our functional and comfortable congress venue, the Kuopio Music Centre. We managed to create an event that was big enough but still had an intimate atmosphere without any practical issues. In addition to the scientific programme, there were social activities and an opportunity to see the Kuopio region from a traveller’s perspective.

I would say that Finland is a functional and reliable host country for congresses. It’s also sustainable and safe. You can always trust the people around you. When we promise to do something, we truly mean it and follow through. Based on recent statistics, Finland is the most popular Nordic country for hosting international congresses and 15th in the world*. 

Kuopio is known and applauded for its warm, welcoming services and reliability. The region offers various kinds of activities and cultural events, fresh air and beautiful nature in the heart of Finnish Lakeland. The city is located just 50 minutes by plane from Finland’s capital, Helsinki. An excellent university, a specialised university hospital and several research institutes help attract national and international congresses to Kuopio.  

The region has several high-level facility options for business meetings and conferences in the city centre, at the university campus and in the Tahko outdoor activity area. Both small meetings and big congresses and business events for up to 1 000 delegates are easy to organise. Furthermore, accommodation is also available close to the congress venues.

Finland wants to be an active participant in the global scientific community, sharing responsibilities, offering expertise and helping solve problems. Finland is home to a great deal of top-tier expertise and scientific research. We produce high-impact research that ranks above the global average, despite growing international competition.  

All this makes Kuopio the perfect setting for scientific congresses. Kuopio also has a high-level research centre and clinic for memory disorders. This allows us to present local and national achievements to the other experts in our field.

These events are extremely valuable to the scientific world. After Covid-19, it was so wonderful to meet and network with experts and colleagues in person again! Organising such a big event is a huge undertaking, but I’d be happy to do it again. After such a successful event, I assume our reputation is now even better than before – this will make it easier for us to collaborate with other research groups and memory clinics in the future.

• 9th Kuopio Alzheimer Symposium and 3rd Nordic Memory Clinic Conference
• Venue: Kuopio Music Centre, Kuopio 
• Conference dates: 24-25 August 2022
• Organiser: University of Eastern Finland Neuroscience Research Community
• Participants: 350 on-site, 50 remote
• Watch the video from the conference. 

*Source: Union of International Associations (UIA), International Meetings Statistics Report 63rd Edition – June 2022.