2025 Brain Days – Part 4: The Future of Brain Health Policy

Brain health is rapidly ascending the global policy agenda. With over three billion people affected by neurological conditions and nearly one billion living with mental health disorders, the burden of brain-related conditions is now the highest contributor to global disability and ill health. This burden extends beyond the health sector—impacting national economies, labour markets, and social protection systems. As populations age and working-age cohorts shrink, brain health has become both a public health necessity and a strategic investment in national resilience and competitiveness.

Neurological and mental health conditions affect more than three billion people globally, with brain-related disorders now representing the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide. The societal and economic burden is vast—stretching national health systems, straining public finances, and undermining long-term productivity and social cohesion. In response, a growing international movement is positioning brain health not only as a health and research issue but also as a social, economic, and policy imperative. This session at the Science Summit during UNGA80 will convene leading voices from science, policy, and finance to explore the emerging global agenda on brain health and brain capital. It will build on recent momentum—from national brain health strategies and EU initiatives to high-level convenings at the World Economic Forum and United Nations—and contribute to the development of a coordinated global Brain Health Action Plan. With 2025 marking a pivotal year for strategic planning across the UN system and beyond, the session will offer a platform to align scientific progress with long-term political and financial commitments, supporting brain health as a driver of resilience, equity, and economic transformation.