European Association for Population Studies

European Association for Population Studies
Name	European Association for Population Studies
Abbreviation	EAPS
Formation	1983
Type	Learned society
Headquarters	Leiden
Region served	Europe

European Association for Population Studies The European Association for Population Studies is a learned society that brings together demographers, sociologists, statisticians, economists, public health scholars, and policy analysts from across Europe and beyond, fostering comparative research on fertility, mortality, migration, ageing, and family change. Founded in the early 1980s amid debates within United Nations population programs and interactions between institutions such as International Union for the Scientific Study of Population and national academies like the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, the association organizes biennial congresses, thematic workshops, and supports early-career researchers through grants and awards.

History

The association emerged during a period of institutional consolidation involving United Nations Population Fund, World Health Organization, and research centers such as the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, the Institut National d'Études Démographiques, the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, and the Population Reference Bureau. Early leadership included scholars affiliated with London School of Economics, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, European University Institute, and Stockholm University. Its formation was influenced by comparative projects involving the European Commission, the Council of Europe, and national statistical offices like Statistics Netherlands and Eurostat. Over subsequent decades the association engaged with networks centered at International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Columbia University, Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, and research programs coordinated by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Bank.

Mission and Objectives

The association’s core objectives align with agendas advanced by entities such as United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations Population Division, and thematic initiatives like the Millennium Development Goals and the Sustainable Development Goals. It aims to advance demographic methods linked to longitudinal studies exemplified by Framingham Heart Study, comparative family studies like the Generations and Gender Programme, and migration research comparable to projects at International Organization for Migration and Migration Policy Institute. The association promotes interdisciplinary work bridging departments at universities including University of Copenhagen, University of Warsaw, University of Milan, Helsinki University, and institutes such as European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research and Max Planck Society.

Governance and Membership

Governance follows practices seen in societies such as the Royal Statistical Society and the American Sociological Association, with an elected council, president, treasurer, and program committee drawn from universities like University of Barcelona, Trinity College Dublin, University of Florence, Université Catholique de Louvain, and Charles University. Membership comprises academic staff, doctoral candidates, and policy practitioners affiliated with ministries (e.g., Ministry of Health (France), Federal Statistical Office (Germany)), research councils like the Economic and Social Research Council and funding bodies such as the European Research Council. Associated national population associations include the British Society for Population Studies, German Society for Demography, Italian Society of Demography and Statistics, and counterparts in Spain, Poland, Portugal, and Greece.

Conferences and Events

Biennial congresses have been hosted in cities with strong demographic traditions, including Lisbon, Vienna, Barcelona, Stockholm, Warsaw, Amsterdam, and Rome, often featuring plenaries with speakers from European Parliament, European Commission Directorate-General for Employment, and international agencies such as UNICEF and World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe. Thematic workshops and summer schools draw on expertise from institutes like the Vienna Institute of Demography, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, Institute for Fiscal Studies, Max Planck Institute for Social Law and Social Policy, and universities including UCL, KU Leuven, LMU Munich, and Universität Zürich.

Publications and Research Activities

The association endorses and collaborates with journals and publishing venues such as Population Studies (journal), European Journal of Population, Demographic Research, Genus (journal), and book series from academic presses like Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, and Routledge. Research topics mirror large-scale projects and datasets maintained by Eurostat, European Social Survey, Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, International Social Survey Programme, Demographic Yearbook, and cohort studies akin to United Kingdom Biobank. Methodological work draws on statistical traditions linked to Royal Statistical Society, American Statistical Association, and laboratories at Imperial College London and ETH Zurich.

Awards and Recognitions

The association recognizes excellence through prizes similar in stature to awards given by the Population Association of America, British Academy, European Research Council, and national academies such as the Académie des Sciences and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Awards honor contributions by scholars from institutions like Sorbonne University, Bocconi University, University of Göttingen, University of Bergen, and think tanks such as Bruegel and Institute for Public Policy Research. Named lectures and early-career grants echo practices of societies such as British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, and the Humboldt Foundation.

Collaborations and Partnerships

Collaborative links span intergovernmental and academic partners including Council of Europe, European Commission, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, World Health Organization, International Labour Organization, and research centers like Institut national d'études démographiques, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Vienna Institute of Demography, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, and universities across Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Norway, and Finland. The association partners with funders and programs such as the European Research Council, Horizon Europe, Wellcome Trust, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and national research councils to support comparative studies, training, and policy-relevant analyses.

Category:Demography organizations Category:European learned societies