Biography
Sarah Lenz Lock is Senior Vice President for Policy in AARP’s Policy, Research and International Affairs (PRI) where she helps position AARP as a thought leader addressing the major issues facing older Americans. Ms. Lock leads AARP’s policy initiatives on brain health and care for people living with dementia, including serving as the Executive Director of the Global Council on Brain Health, an independent collaborative of scientists, doctors, and policy experts convened by AARP to provide trusted information on brain health.
Ms. Lock coordinates AARP’s role in the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations, and helps to assure policy alignment within AARP. From 2007 to 2013 she served as Vice President, Office of Policy Integration of AARP, where she directed the office responsible for the development of AARP’s public policies. Previously, Ms. Lock was Senior Attorney/Manager at AARP Foundation Litigation conducting impact litigation on behalf of older persons, working on health care issues related to Medicare, Medicaid, managed care, long term care, and prescription drugs. She has authored numerous amicus briefs in appellate courts all over the country on health care issues impacting older Americans.
Sarah is a member of the American Society on Aging and the National Academy of Social Insurance. Sarah serves on the HHS Administration on Community Living Aging and Cognitive Health Technical Expert Advisory Board, the Dementia Friendly America National Council, and the Health and Aging Policy Fellow Program National Advisory Board Member. She formerly served as a Commissioner for the American Bar Association’s Commission on Law and Aging.
Prior to joining AARP, Sarah served as a Trial Attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice handling complex litigation against federal agencies such as NIH, FDA, the Air Force and Army, and EPA. She provided legal advice and assisted in policy development for numerous federal agencies on issues that included information technology, transportation, security and terrorism, and tort reform. She also taught at the Attorney General’s Advocacy Institute for Civil Trial Advocacy.
Lock, S.
Workshop
Global Council on Brain Health Recommendations Highlight Opportunities to Promote Healthy Aging in Adults
Biography
Lindsay Chura, Ph.D. is a senior policy and research advisor in AARP’s Office of Policy Development & Integration and serves as the Chief Scientific Officer for the Global Council on Brain Health in September 2015. Lindsay received her doctorate in Psychiatry from the University of Cambridge as a Gates Cambridge Scholar for her research that focused on structural neuroimaging of the brain. Prior to studying in the UK, Lindsay was a Fulbright Scholar at a clinic in Australia specializing in reproductive medicine.
Lindsay was previously a Senior Policy Advisor to the British Ambassador in Washington where she managed the international health and life science portfolio. At the Embassy, Lindsay was actively engaged in G7 coordination activities surrounding the Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia, and in 2014 she led a Congressional delegation to the UK focused on aging and dementia research and care.
An alumna of Mount Holyoke College, Lindsay has published across a range of scientific domains, and has previously written for US News & World Report as an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mass Media Fellow. She enjoys engaging with schools and the wider community through science outreach activities.
Chura, L.
Biography
Nicholas “Nick” Barracca is a policy analyst in AARP’s Office of Policy Development Integration and serves as project manager of the Global Council on Brain Health (GCBH), a collaborative from AARP. The GCBH is an independent collaborative of scientists, doctors, scholars and policy experts convened by AARP to provide the best thinking on what people and professionals can do to maintain and improve brain health. He has managed policy forums related to brain health such as the AARP Dementia Care Technology and Innovation Forum and supported the Changing Global Care for Dementia event with the Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s disease.
Prior to his current role, he was with AARP’s Chief Public Policy Officer’s office, supporting the enterprises’ work with the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations (LCAO), a coalition of 72 national nonprofit organizations concerned with the well-being of America’s older population. During his work with LCAO, the coalition co-planned the 2015 White House Conference on Aging (WHCoA), consisting of regional forums leading up to decennial event in July 2015. He joined AARP as an intern with AARP International during his senior year of undergraduate studies in 2013.
Nick received his bachelor’s degree from the Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University in 2014. His concentrations were International Economics and Development with a minor in Economics.
Barracca, N.
Our global society is undergoing an unprecedented demographic shift with the aging population now comprising the fastest growing demographic. As people live longer, the need for clear, trustworthy information on brain health based on the most up-to-date neuroscience findings is greater than ever. The Global Council on Brain Health (GCBH) was launched by AARP, in collaboration with Age UK, and aims to provide the scientific foundation for policy recommendations to improve public health. The Council is an independent collaborative of scientists, physicians, scholars and policy experts convened to provide the foremost thinking on what people and professionals can do to maintain and improve brain health. A core group of thirteen experts from around the world comprise “the hub” or governance committee. This group will lead issue-matter experts –“the spokes”- in examining lifestyle priority areas, including: physical exercise, cognitively stimulating activities, diet, sleep, mental well-being and social engagement. Surveys have been conducted to ascertain ways in which AARP can engage with the public to promote brain health and provide information on topics of most interest. The Council has issued five reports to date that highlight consensus statements issued by the world’s foremost leaders who have led groundbreaking research across a range of medical specialties of relevance to brain health. Moreover, these reports contain recommendations for the general public that focus on risk reduction as a way of promoting and maintaining brain health. To this end, the GCBH aims to translate scientific findings into actionable steps that can be achieved through innovative strategies. This presentation will provide a framework to discuss the issues of greatest importance to people as they age and their clinicians.
