European Alliance Against Depression e.V.

EU Legislative Interests

The European Alliance Against Depression is the lead and Project Coordinator (Head: Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hegerl) for the MENTBEST project which commenced in May 2023. The project is funded in the EU Horizon 2022 "Staying healthy" programme. https://mentbest.com The overall objective of MENTBEST is to enable vulnerable individuals, mental health practitioners, and communities across Europe to prevent and mitigate mental health problems (clinical and non-clinical) related to rapid changes in our societies. For thos purpose, MENTBEST proposes the use of proven community-based interventions and innovative technologies. ----------------------------------------- The European Alliance Against Depression is the lead and Project Coordinator (Head: Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hegerl) for the MentBox project, which commenced in September 2024. The project is funded in the EU4Health Programme (EU4H) programme. www.mentbox.eu MentBox aims at closing the existing gap between the best available practices in mental health and the ability of EU Member States to implement them in vulnerable populations. The digital MentalHealth Toolbox (MH-Toolbox) which will be developed is a practical solution that supports and complements efforts to develop and implement a comprehensive, prevention-oriented approach to mental health. The high prevalence of mental health issues in Europe has significant personal, societal, and economic impacts, which have been worsened by the recent pandemic and the ongoing war in Ukraine. To address this, European member states need evidence-based mental health interventions that are effective, practical, adaptable, scalable, and tailored to minority groups, as well as easy to implement. --------------------------- The European Alliance Against Depression is partner in the HORIZON 2023 project PROSPERH which will commence in January 2024. The overall aim of PROSPERH is to expand current knowledge about health in changing work environments and to develop and evaluate an integrative intervention targeting mental and physical health that yields sustainable benefits in terms of workplace mental/physical health indicators and economic outcomes.

Communication Activities

The EAAD is responsible for the international coordination and dissemination of the iFightDepression® self-management tool and the EAAD Depression Awareness Website, which are results of the EU-funded research project PREDI-NU ("Preventing Depression and Improving Awareness through Networking in the EU", funding period: September 2011 to August 2014): www.tool.ifightdepression.com www.ifightdepression.com The EAAD Depression Awareness Website (www.ifightdepression.com) aims to provide evidence-based information about depression and suicidal behaviour for the following groups: (1) broad general public (2) young people (3) family and friends (4) community professionals (media, teachers, religious leaders, police) (5) health care professionals (general practitioners, pharmacists). The website was launched in April 2014 and is available in 18 languages (status September 2022). The website provides resources on different depression topics, e.g. information on the causes, symptoms and treatment options of depression. Visitors can take a self-test, provide feedback about the website, find help contact details for their country as well as other useful links, a glossary and a download section with region specific material. The iFightDepression® Tool is an internet-based self-management programme for individuals experiencing milder forms of depression. It is available in 15 languages (status Nov 2025), including youth and adult versions. It is free of charge and is intended to help individuals to self-manage their symptoms of depression and to promote recovery. The tool is used with the support of a trained guiding health professional, such as general practitioners, psychotherapists and clinical psychologists. In 2025, the iFightDepression Tool experienced a significant technical relaunch, improving user-friendliness and ensuring alignment with strengthened data security standards. Relevant publications from the EAAD network can be found online: https://www.eaad.net/how-eaad-helps/ifightdepression ---------------------- The European Alliance Against Depression organised the first European Patient Congress Depression (EPCD) on 7 December 2024 (https://epc-depression.com/). The event was targeted at people with depression and their relatives and friends and offered expert talks and experience reports. The next EPCD will take place on 28 November 2026.

Interests Represented

Does not represent commercial interests

Member Of

https://mentbox.eu/ https://www.prosperh.eu/ https://mentbest.com https://ja-mentor.eu/ https://www.who.int/europe/initiatives/the-pan-european-mental-health-coalition https://eaad-best.eu/ https://www.mentuppproject.eu/ https://ifightdepression.com/en/mesur http://www.implementall.eu/

Organisation Members

The European Alliance Against Depression has organisations (no natural persons) as members. The full list of members can be found online: https://www.eaad.net/about-eaad/members

Additional Information

The allocations of funding in 2024 from the EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR RESEARCH & INNOVATION were for projects: EAAD-Best - Grant No. 101018325 MENTUPP - Grant No. 848137 MESUR - Grant No. 101101460 MentBox - Grant No. 101161222 EAAD-Grow - Grant No. 101176465