Participants of the roundtable

1. April 2, 2015 - Roundtable on the implications of longevity
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Prof. James VAUPEL
Holder of the AXA Chair on Longevity (University of Southern Denmark)
James W. Vaupel is Executive Director of the MPIDR and Head of the Laboratories of Survival and
Longevity and of Evolutionary Demography. Since January 2013 he has also been heading the newly
founded Max-Planck Odense Center on the Biodemography of Aging. James W. Vaupel studied
mathematical statistics and received his PhD in public policy at Harvard University. After serving as a
professor at Duke University, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Southern Denmark,
he became Founding Director of the MPIDR in 1996. James W. Vaupel is a leading scientist in the
field of aging research, and has been instrumental in developing and advancing the idea of the
plasticity of longevity. He pioneered research on the heterogeneity of mortality risks, and on the
deceleration of death rates at the highest ages.
Prof. Miia KIVIPELTO
Recipient of the AXA Award “The Role of Lifestyle in Cognitive and Everyday Functioning at
Older Ages” (2014)
Miia Kivipelto, MD, PhD, is Professor in Clinical Geriatric Epidemiology at the Karolinska Institute’s
Center for Alzheimer Research, senior geriatrician and Head of the Clinical Trials Unit at the Memory
Clinic of the Karolinska University Hospital, where she is also Director of Research, Development and
Education. She is Research Director of Neuroepidemiology at the University of Eastern Finland. Prof.
Kivipelto’s research focuses on the prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of cognitive impairment,
dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Through epidemiological studies she has identified various lifestyle
risk factors for dementia. Based on these observations, she launched the Finnish Geriatric Intervention
Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER). She is also principal investigator of the
Multimodal Preventive Trials for Alzheimer’s Disease: Towards Multinational Strategies (MIND-AD)
project. Furthermore, Prof. Kivipelto initiated the Nordic Brain Network, co-founded the European
Dementia Prevention Initiative, and has received numerous prestigious awards.

2. April 2, 2015 - Roundtable on the implications of longevity
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Dr. Thilo SCHUMACHER
Head of Health, AXA Germany
Prior to his appointment as Head of Health at AXA Konzern AG, Thilo Schumacher served as
Head of Strategy & Organization. He joined AXA in 2006, after working as a Consultant for
McKinsey & Company. He graduated from the Koblenz School of Management (WHU) and
holds a PhD in Economics.