For six decades, the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) has stood at the centre of public health education and training in Europe. It has guided generations of leaders, academics, and practitioners, nurturing the discipline’s intellectual and institutional foundations. Throughout this history, the ASPHER Deans' and Directors' Retreat has served as a unique platform for reflection, exchange, and collective vision-building among heads of schools and programmes of public health.

For this 60th Anniversary year, ASPHER will convene the 1st European Congress on Education and Training in Public Health stemming from this strong tradition. It aims to build upon and expand ASPHER’s long-standing mission: to strengthen the capacity and quality of public health education and to ensure that future generations of professionals are prepared to face evolving challenges. The initiative represents a natural evolution in ASPHER’s trajectory, translating its accumulated experience and thought leadership into a larger, more visible European framework.

The Milan2026 Congress is hosted by four ASPHER Members in the Lombardy Region:

WHO Collaborating Center for Design & Health, Department of Architecture, Built Environment, and Construction (DABC), Polytechnic of Milan

Postgraduate School of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, University of Milan

Postgraduate School of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, University of Pavia

Postgraduate School of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, University Vita-Salute San Raffaele (UniSR)