Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU)

Our research

The Department of Sport Science and Sport at FAU has been operating the WHO Collaborating Centre for Physical Activity and Public Health (WHO CC) since 2014. In close collaboration with the WHO Regional Office for Europe, the work of the collaborating centre focuses on five areas: (1) collaborating with countries in the area of physical activity policy development and implementation, (2) monitoring physical activity policies, (3) collecting and analysing European and global physical activity surveillance data, (4) aligning physical activity promotion with global challenges such as climate change and human rights, and (5) promoting physical activity for people with non-communicable diseases. At national level, FAU has been collaborating closely with the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG) for over a decade, and led the development of Germany’s National Recommendations for Physical Activity and Physical Activity Promotion. This experience is complemented by various participatory projects aiming to promote physical activity for vulnerable population groups.

Our IMPAQT team 

Dr. Sven Messing is the FAU lead of the IMPAQT project. Leonie Birkholz is a researcher specialising in physical activity policy at national and local level. Dr. Karim Abu-Omar and Dr. Antonina Tcymbal support the team as post-doctoral researchers. Prof. Peter Gelius was previously located in FAU and is now professor at the Université de Lausanne; he has a particular focus on health equity in physical activity policy.