European Year for Development closes with high level event in Luxembourg. The closing ceremony for the European Year for Development 2015 (EYD 2015) held on the 9th December in Luxembourg marked the culmination of a successful campaign, which has seen partners such as youth groups, international organisations, members of the public, NGOs, the private sector, schools and universities from all over the EU, and worldwide, come together in a wide…

It’s that time of the year when most people start planning their resolutions for the New Year – a tradition in which one resolves to do an act of self-improvement. Popular pledges include becoming more assertive or more environmentally responsible, learning something new, volunteering to help others, or improving one’s physical or mental well-being.

Celebrate ex-smokers’ achievements on the 30th October This year’s Day of the Ex-Smoker, held on the 30th October, celebrates the hard-earned achievements of ex-smokers across Europe. Ex-smokers are invited to participate in the new Ex-smokers sparkle brighter challenge, by lighting a sparkler to celebrate their healthier, smoke-free, life. iCoach users can also share photos of their “brightest moments” on the EU_Health Twitter and Instagram social media accounts. As this time…

Sport and games play a key role in social inclusion MOVE, a non-profit organisation dedicated to nurturing children’s creativity through play, today held a half-day event in Valletta as part of the European Year for Development 2015 (EYD2015) to promote social inclusion through games and sport by exposing local as well as migrant children and youths to the intercultural dimension in a fun and lively way.

A new approach to Corporate Social Responsibility “Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is an important tool for the competitiveness of enterprises that can bring benefits in terms of risk management, cost savings, access to capital, customer relations, human resource management, and innovation capacity.” This was stated by MEUSAC Head, Dr Vanni Xuereb in his introductory remarks to a business breakfast on ‘Responsible Business: A New Approach to Corporate Social Responsibility’ organised…

Eurobarometer reveals that tobacco use is down by 2 percentage points in the EU since 2012, but 26% of Europeans are still smokers Ahead of World No Tobacco Day on Sunday 31 May, the Commission publishes a Eurobarometer on Europeans’ attitudes towards tobacco. The survey reveals a downward trend in tobacco use across Europe. The overall reduction compared with 2012 is 2 percentage points (26% vs. 28%). The age category…

Healthy eating habits start young, so the EU and its member states should do and spend more to encourage kids to eat healthy and local foods, Parliament said on Wednesday. To ensure that they get healthy eating lessons, as well as school milk, fruit, and vegetables from EU schemes, Parliament amended draft rules and approved a mandate for MEPs to negotiate their final form with EU member states.

MEUSAC, the European Parliament Information Office in Malta and the European Commission Representation in Malta today organised a half-day conference on ‘Peace and Security’, as one of the main events of the European Year for Development 2015 (EYD2015). MEUSAC is the national coordinator for the EYD2015 in Malta.

Micro and small enterprises present special challenges in achieving healthier and safer workplaces. Restricted time and resources are frequently highlighted as a barrier to adopting a proactive approach to health and safety management. Moreover, such enterprises may experience difficulty in complying with occupational health and safety legislation and tend to underestimate the risks posed by their workplaces.

Sign up to the new and improved iCoach and set your personal challenge today! One in three of the more than 431,000 registered users of previous campaigns stopped smoking after three months with the free digital health coach, iCoach. With new and improved functions, the revamped online and mobile tool should help even more smokers stub out their last cigarette. In the run-up to World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) on…