The Chair’s Campaign focuses on a topic of importance to the incoming ELF Chair. The current campaign will put a spotlight on carers, chosen by ELF Chair Phil Taverner.
Make a donationThe campaign will focus on a theme close to the heart of the ELF Chair and will run across their three-year mandate. Each campaign will aim to:
In 2026, we welcomed Phil Taverner as our new Chair. As a patient advocate, Phil has seen firsthand the vital role unpaid and family carers play in supporting people living with lung conditions.
“Carers are often the hidden partners in care. They provide invaluable support every day, but their contribution is not always recognised and their own needs overlooked. Through this campaign, we want to raise awareness of carers’ experiences, strengthen support for carers and ensure their voices are heard across Europe.”
For his Chair’s Campaign, Phil has chosen to spotlight carers and their enormous contribution to the health and wellbeing of people living with lung conditions. Carers provide practical, emotional and day-to-day support, often while balancing work, family life and their own health needs. Yet despite the essential role they play, many carers feel under-recognised and lack the support they need.
Through the campaign, ELF will work with carers, patient organisations and healthcare professionals across Europe to better understand carers’ experiences, raise awareness of the challenges they face and highlight the vital role they play in supporting people affected by lung conditions.
As part of the campaign, ELF is establishing a Carers Working Group to help shape its activities and priorities. If you are a carer, or represent carers, and would like to get involved, share your experiences or join the working group, please contact Dan Beever at daniel.beever@europeanlung.org.
