Over two inspiring days, we shared insights on research into informal care across Europe and highlighted the gender and social inequalities that underscore the hidden value of informal care.

Several key messages emerged:
- Unpaid care remains structurally overlooked in European economic systems. It is not accurately reflected in national accounts, leaving informal caregivers with poorer pension and social benefit outcomes.

- We should move beyond merely considering the economic value of care and emphasize the hidden value of care as a whole by highlighting its social, political, cultural, and intrinsic value.

-People are more important than numbers. Quantifying the monetary value of unpaid care is a powerful tool for making its scale visible to policymakers and society as a whole. However, it must be linked to the caregivers’ own voices and life experiences to avoid reducing care to mere numbers and diminishing its social value.

This event was made possible thanks to the invaluable contribution of our co-organizers and hosts—the Institute of Sociology and the Center for Evaluation and Analysis of Public Policies at Jagiellonian University 

The event was organized and moderated by Jolanta Perek-Białas and Andreas Hoff.

A heartfelt thank you to all colleagues who participated and presented their work—your contributions made this event truly inspiring.