Free Registration
This event celebrates 20 years of national surveys on physical activity and physical fitness in Norway and the official opening of the Oslo Research Centre for Physical Activity and Population Health (ORC-PAPH). The centre collaborates with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
The programme is divided into three thematic sessions and is free and open to all interested participants. You may register for one, two, or all parts using the form below.
PART 1 – 20 years of physical activity surveillance in Norway (KAN/ungKan)
Thursday 16 April 2026, 09:15–12:00 – Held in Norwegian
This part marks the 20-year anniversary of the KAN/ungKan studies – Norway’s national surveillance of physical activity and physical fitness. The programme provides insight into how the surveillance has evolved, key findings, and how the data have been applied in public health work.
Programme – Part 1
- 09:15 – 09:20: Opening and welcome – Head of Department of Sports Medicine Hege Clemm (NIH)
- 09:20 – 09:35: The history of monitoring physical activity and physical fitness in Norway – Sigmund Alfred Anderssen (NIH)
- 09:35 – 09:50: How do we measure physical activity and fitness in the population – and can we trust the data? – Jostein Steene-Johannessen (NIH)
- 09:50 – 10:05: Break
- 10:05 – 10:55: FROM DATA TO INSIGHT – What have 20 years of surveillance studies taught us?
- Physical activity levels in Norway – status and trends - Elisabeth Teinung (NIH), Anders Husøy (NIH) and Bjørge Herman Hansen (NIH/UiA)
- Physical fitness in Norway – status and trends - Elisabeth Edvardsen (NIH), Jostein Steene-Johannessen (NIH) and Hilde Lohne-Seiler (UiA)
- Determinants of and social inequalities in physical activity levels - Elin Kolle (NIH)
- 10:55 – 11:05: Questions from the audience
- 11:05 – 11:25: Break
- 11:25 – 11:45: How are KAN and ungKAN used in public health practice? – Olov Belander (Senior Adviser, Norwegian Directorate of Health)
- 11:45 – 12:00: What comes next? The future of national surveillance of physical activity – Jostein Steene-Johannessen (NIH)
- 12:00 – 13:00: Break (Lunch)
PART 2 – Opening of ORC-PAPH and International Perspectives
Thursday 16 April 2026, 13:00–16:00 – Held in English
This session marks the formal opening of ORC-PAPH as a WHO Collaborating Centre, and as a partner with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI). It highlights physical activity in a global context and features speakers with insights into global recommendations, research, and trends.
Program del 2
- 13:00-13:10: Introduction and opening - Aage Radmann (NIH), Guri Rørtveit (FHI), and Sigmund Anderssen (NIH)
- 13:10-13:20: WHO collaborating centre – Juana Willumsen (WHO), Ulf Ekelund (NIH)
- 13:20-13:35: Status of Non-Communicable Diseases in Norway – Status and trends- Inger Ariansen (FHI)
- 13:35-14:05: The evolution of global Physical Activity guidelines with future directions - Juana Willumsen (WHO)
- 14:05-14:35: Physical Activity and sedentary time - NCDs and all-cause mortality: how much or how little? - Ulf Ekelund (NIH)
- 1435-1445: Q and A
- 14:45-15:05: Pause
- 15.05-15:20: Domain specific Physical Activity and health – Knut Eirik Dalene (FHI)
- 15:20-15:35: About OBCT, horizon funded EU project - Jakob Tarp (NIH / SDU)
- 15:35-15:50: Exercise is Medicine – time to wake up! Elin Kolle (NIH)
- 15:50-16:15: Respiratory Health – Trine Stensrud, Julie Stang, Hege Clemm (NIH)
- 16:15-16:25: Q and A
- 16.25-16.30: Closing remarks – Sigmund Alfred Anderssen and Ulf Ekelund (NIH)
PART 3 – In-depth: Measuring Physical Activity
Friday 17 April 2026, 09:00–12:00 – Held in English
This session presents cutting-edge developments in measuring physical activity – from wearable sensor technologies and machine learning to challenges in population-based studies. Especially relevant for researchers, PhD candidates, and professionals working in physical activity monitoring.
Programme – Part 3
- 09:00-09:05 Introduction – Jostein Steene-Johannessen (NIH)
- 09:05-09:25 Four decades of device-based physical activity assessment: an overview – Bjørge Herman Hansen (UIA/NIH)
- 09:25-09:35 Harmonised device-based PA monitoring across Europe in the Joint Action Prevent NCD Pilot – What we have learned so far? - Johan Jamil Ganouri Mjelve and Ole Dalene Holst (FHI)
- 09:35-10:20 Machine learning methods to measure movement behaviours from accelerometer data - Aiden Doherty (University of Oxford)
- 10:20-10:50 Pause
- 10:50-11:15 Machine learning for activity type recognition in more than 30,000 Norwegians: results from the HUNT4 study – Atle Kongsvold (NTNU)
- 11:15–12:00 Plenary discussion – From self-report to raw-data metrics: Key takeaways from WHO meetings on global population measurement and wearable sensors. With Juana Willumsen (World Health Organization) and Aiden Doherty (University of Oxford). Moderator: Ulf Ekelund (NIH).
Free Registration
Presentations will be recorded and made available on the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences’ website after the event.