SUSTAINABILITY & SUCCESSFUL AGE

FRIENDLY CITIES

I. SUCCESSFUL AGE FRIENDLY CITIES EXAMPLES

Brazil
 Supported active aging and age friendly since 2008
 Project examples:
o Best print media on ageing
o Life histories prize/ intergenerational
o Academic research prize
o Longevity forum
o AF public transport project
o Customer service training/ doorman training

New York
 Innovative solutions to meet seniors desires, and meet broader
social policies
o 130 intersections have been modified/ decrease in
fatalities
o city bench program (1000 benches placed upon requests)
o seniors swim
o new laundry rooms
o AF businesses/ 1000 enrolled businesses/ compendium
of strategies and practices

Des Moines
 # 1 City for Active Ageing
 Community meeting with holistic approach (considering social
and built environment)
 “What affects your ability to live your best life in your
community”
 Targeted 50 yrs.+
o Desire independence, choice and control.
o meetings in restaurants, halls and neighborhood
(participant response keypads)
o used smart boards/ pictures
o Conference with Iowa Thought Leaders- in-depth
discussion
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Ireland
 Ireland’s Age Friendly Cities and Counties Programme
 Whole person/ whole community approach
 Backgrounder on needs/ stats
 Project examples:
o Age Friendly Towns/ engaging skills of older adults
o OPRAH (Older People Remaining at Home)
o Wisdom Banks
o Crime Prevention Ambassadors
 AF business recognition/ AF restaurant guide
 www.agefriendlycounties.ie
 www.agefriendlycounties.com
 Ageing Well Network

Ottawa
 Extensive research and consultation/ focus groups and
interviews
 Community framework was developed
 www.coaottawa.ca
 Project examples:
o Assessment of parks/ outdoor spaces
o Promote accessibility guidelines in community
o Community AF projects
o Promote transportation options
o Offer door through door assistance/ and affordable
options
o Provide continuum of housing options
o Explore house matching service
o Promote 211/ build upon informal networks
o Increase computer literacy
o Remove recreation participation barriers
o Increase continuing education options
o Calendar of event and list of affordable spaces/ resources
o Invite seniors to participate on boards/ consult with
seniors
o Provide incentives and flexible working conditions
o Support outreach to non-formal groups
o Expand mental health services/ information on age
related illnesses an care options

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 o Offer age sensitivity training/ offer information to media
o Encourage seniors to assess age friendliness of
communities

II. SUSTAINABILITY SUGGESTIONS

 Strong platform
o Build upon lifelong approaches and active aging policies
o Promote benefits for all/ design for all ages/ age friendly
across life course
o Link with World Health Organization/ Global Age Friendly
Cities leadership/ evidence based research (WHO
designation)
o Focus on policies, services, settings and structures
 Build leadership, governance and infrastructure
o Infrastructure examples (i.e. Commission, Steering
Committees, Secretariat, Multi-sectoral approach)
 Build a critical mass of support
o Bottom up, top down approaches, win-win
 Be relevant to competing agendas
 Obtain political support
 Understand needs and benefits
o Link customer service with Age Friendly
 Engage older adults
 Strategic/ significant/ impacting and visible initiatives
o Institutional and imbedded initiatives
o Everyone’s business, innovate, demonstrate, evaluate
disseminate and institutionalize
 Share learning’s, milestones and resources
 Strong communication messages
 Develop projects to pay for themselves
o (i.e. link services, partnerships, encourage social enterprise)

Prepared by Brenda Wong

November 29, 2013