A global dialogue on the future of healthy longevity
The four pillars of the 2025 Declaration. Figure from Kitani et al., npj Aging (2025), CC BY 4.0.
The inaugural edition of the World Longevity Summit marked the beginning of a global dialogue on the future of healthy longevity, bringing together scientists, institutions, healthcare professionals, communities, and cultural leaders to explore how longer lives can also become healthier, more meaningful, and socially sustainable.
Hosted in Kyotango City (Kyoto Prefecture, Japan) in 2025 — a region internationally recognized for its longevity culture and community-centered lifestyle — the Summit highlighted the importance of integrating cutting-edge scientific research with human values, social cohesion, and local traditions. The discussions emphasized that longevity is not merely a biomedical challenge, but a multidimensional societal goal involving health, nutrition, physical activity, intergenerational connection, emotional wellbeing, and a renewed sense of purpose in life.
Building upon the legacy of the 2025 Declaration, the World Longevity Summit 2027, to be held in Salsomaggiore Terme (Italy), will further expand this international platform for collaboration and innovation. Italy, with its deep cultural heritage, strong community traditions, renowned Mediterranean lifestyle, and growing commitment to research and healthy aging policies, represents a natural bridge between scientific excellence and the human-centered dimensions of longevity.
The 2027 Summit will continue to promote an integrated vision of healthy aging through four interconnected dimensions: fostering human relationships and social participation; encouraging sustainable nutritional models and shared food cultures; supporting active lifestyles and daily wellbeing practices; and cultivating gratitude, purpose, and “Ikigai” as essential components of quality of life.
At the same time, the Summit will strengthen dialogue across emerging scientific domains, including molecular and cellular mechanisms of aging, microbiome and metabolic research, population-based longevity studies, preventive medicine, and community-centered approaches to health and wellbeing. Particular attention will also be devoted to the responsible integration of digital technologies and artificial intelligence in support of healthy aging, preventive healthcare, independent living, and social inclusion. In this perspective, technological innovation is understood not as an end in itself, but as a tool to enhance quality of life, strengthen healthcare systems, and foster more connected and resilient communities.
The Italian edition will further explore how cities, territories, and local communities can become active ecosystems of longevity through sustainable urban development, accessibility, cultural participation, environmental quality, and intergenerational engagement. By connecting scientific evidence, public policy, cultural practices, and technological innovation, the initiative aims to contribute to the development of inclusive and longevity-oriented societies.
The World Longevity Summit 2027 aspires to become not only a scientific gathering, but also a global forum for rethinking the future of human longevity through cooperation between cultures, generations, institutions, disciplines, and emerging technologies. In an era of profound demographic transformation, the Summit seeks to affirm a shared vision of longevity based on dignity, wellbeing, sustainability, and human connection.
