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Age-friendly communities initiative becomes an international movement

Aims t o alt er t he image of seniors as a burden on societ y
Twenty per cent of seniors in the South American country of Ecuador live in extreme poverty, mostly in rural areas, according to a World Health Organization advisor on healthy aging. Enrique Vega Garcia told a conf erence panel that the numbers are similar across South America and in much of the developing world. Many of these people have poor access to medical treatment and suf f er ill health as a consequence. Garcia spoke during a Winnipeg conf erence last week, entitled Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities and Places. T he conf erence was hosted by the University of Manitobas Centre on Aging and co-sponsored by the Province of Manitobas Seniors and Healthy Aging Secretariat. T he event invited academics, policy makers and representatives f rom seniors organizations f rom countries worldwide to discuss solutions to the social and demographic impacts of an aging society. T he concept of age-f riendly, coined by the World Health Organization , stresses the need f or communities to develop transportation, streets, housing , and social engagement f or seniors to remain happy, active members of society. But in developing nations, the issue goes f ar beyond building better sidewalks and housing. Vega Garcia recalled speaking to an older man in South America with serious health issues. T he man was also dealing with f amily issues at the time, and Vega Garcia asked if he was depressed. Oh, son, I have no time to be depressed, the man replied. Vega Garcia says impoverished seniors dont have time to enjoy their old age, either, and thats a problem. T he people dont have time to play, he said. Responsibilities to f amily, community and the need to make a living f or survival trump seniors ef f orts to stay healthy in these areas. Vega Garcia says age-f riendly in these cases means f inding ways to alleviate some of the stress and responsibility of lif e in old age. T he Director of the University of Manitobas Centre on Aging, Verena Menec, said we need to address the demographic shif t caused by an increasing number of older people. Its an issue in every part of the world. Especially in developing countries. Menec said age-f riendly is a positive solution to a complex issue. She said the initiative has grown rapidly

since its inception in 2006. It has come to be an international movement, she said. Her ongoing research will likely measure how the health and quality of lif e of seniors varies in communities that have embraced age-f riendly. Part of the challenge, advocates say, is changing a common perception of older people as a burden on society. Helen Hamlin, a 90-year-old resident of New York City, relies on a mantra to dispel the myth. Older people are resources, not burdens, she says. T he mantra stresses seniors contributions to society as volunteers, tax-payers, and caregivers in their communities. Hamlin is the International Federation on Ageings main representative to the United Nations. She speaks f rom experience when she says that aging has gotten a bad rap. When people look at me and say, Oh, youre that age? I say of course. Im proud of it. She says shes healthy, she lives alone, and its a good lif e. T here are many people who continue to live and they dont like themselves, Hamlin said. You need to remind yourself that its okay to be old. Lindsay Jolivet is an intern with the Evidence Network of Canadian Health Policy. Her work has been published in the Montreal Gazette, Huffington Post Canada and broadcast on the CBC.