Life expectancies in the EU have increased significantly over the past decades and are expected to continue increasing. Age-specific health statuses have also generally been improving. In contrast to these profound changes, the concepts that demographers have used to analyze ageing on a population level have remained largely static. The substantial changes in life expectancy and health status have rendered these traditional demographic measures inadequate for the analysis of ageing at the population level in the 21st century. A better understanding of age and ageing, for both science and policy, requires new approaches. This project will comprehensively reassess population ageing based on innovative alternative definitions of age and ageing as pioneered by the PI.The project will develop new approaches to the study of age and ageing that are appropriate for 21st century conditions. It will produce new scientific knowledge that is useful in policy formulation and that can educate the public about population ageing and its consequences. Among other things, the proposed project will ascertain the extent to which advanced societies are actually ageing in multiple dimensions, including health, cognitive abilities, and longevity. By addressing such fundamental issues this project will likely have a pronounced impact on future population ageing research.The new tools and measures developed in the project will facilitate evaluation of the impacts of future changes in public policies, such as increases in statutory pension ages. Applications will be primarily to the EU, but also selected countries experiencing rapid population ageing will be included. The results will be of utmost socioeconomic and political importance for the necessary future restructuring of European pension and health systems in the context of maintaining Europe’s global competitiveness.