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Intergenerational Community Building
The document discusses intergenerational community building as a strategy to address social isolation and demographic changes by fostering connections across all age groups. It emphasizes the importance of collaboration, resident leadership, and designing inclusive public spaces to enhance well-being and social capital. Key outcomes include increased social connectedness, improved community capacity, and the potential to bridge racial and ethnic divides through meaningful engagement.
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Intergenerational Community Building
- 1. Intergenerational Community Building Nancy Henkin,Ph.D. Generations United Washington, DC
- 2. Why NOW? • Demographicchanges • Silo-ed approach to problem solving • Social isolation
- 3. What is intergenerational communitybuilding? Intentionally bringing diverse age groups together to address issues that affect people at all stages of life , to foster social connectedness, and to promote mutual understanding/empathy.
- 4. Theoretical Underpinnings • Lifecourse perspective • Age- segregation • Social capital/collective efficacy • Age-inclusive public spaces: Agency and Belonging
- 5. Communities for AllAges: A Case Study
- 6. Vision • People ofall ages are supported, empowered and engaged in community life • Diverse organizations and residents work together for the common good • Strong social networks foster interdependence across ages and cultures • The physical environment promotes cross- generational interaction
- 7. Lens • Engagement acrossthe life span • Focus on cross-generational relationships • Assets and place-based • Economies of scale ( one intervention to address multiple problems
- 8. Approach Phases of work: 1.Strengtheningcross sector collaboration 2.Building resident leadership 3.Assessing the community using an intergenerational lens 4. Planning and moving into action 5. Evaluating
- 9. CFAA Key Strategies Empowering and engaging residents Creating places, practices,& policies for cross-age interaction Building cross-sector alliances Expanding opportunities and supports across life span Increased Capacity: •Expanded collaboration/ resource sharing •Increased ability to use IG strategies to address issues •Increased civic engagement opportunities for all ages Increased Well-Being: •Increased social connectedness •Tangible improvement in targeted issue •Increased sense of collective responsibility Intermediate Outcomes Long-Term Outcomes Increased capacity to address critical issues from a multi- generational perspective Improved well-being of all ages and increased social capital
- 10. Key Strategies Building Cross-SectorAlliances
- 11. Engaging Residents ofall Ages in Leadership Roles
- 12. Creating Places, Practicesand Policies for Cross-Age Interaction
- 13. • Expanding opportunitiesand supports across the lifespan
- 14. Well-being outcomes • Increasedaccess to healthy, affordable food • Increased participation in physical exercise • Decreased levels of violence • Improved physical infrastructure • Increased support for schools
- 15. Social capital outcomes •Increased trust and engagement across age, race, class and ethnicity “I think older people are afraid of younger people…but when you mix them up together…its not so scary, is it? Young people are like everybody else, you have to get used to them…reach out to them…embrace them” -Older adult resident
- 16. Community capacity outcomes •Expanded opportunities for all ages to contribute to communities (community planning, bridging leadership, advisory boards, organizing, advocacy) • More inclusive leadership development practices • Expanded organizational alliances (universities, aging network, faith- based)
- 17. Lessons learned • CFAA’sdual focus on promoting well being across the lifespan and building community capacity appeals to many groups and increases likelihood of long-term impact.
- 18. • Intergenerational communitybuilding is most successful when it engages individuals from all stages of life (not just young and old) and intentionally focuses on fostering meaningful relationships from the outset.
- 19. • Multi generationalspaces hold great promise for building social capital and creating a tangible representation of the CFAA vision.
- 20. • An intergenerationalapproach can be effective in bridging racial and ethnic divides.
- 21. “We are caughtin an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
- 22.
- 23. Opportunities and Challenges •In what ways could an intergenerational approach add value to your work and help you build communities that are good for growing up and growing older? • How could an intergenerational lens be infused into other Scottish initiatives ( e.g. age-friendly, social isolation, redesign of public space, entrepreneurship, immigrant integration)? Discuss for 20 minutes in break out groups.
- 24. Resources Found at www.gu.org/resources: Communitiesfor All Ages: Lessons Learned Communities for All Ages: Resource Guide Leadership for All Ages Creating An Age- Advantaged Community • Age-Inclusive Public Spaces (2020) D. Hauderowicz and K. Serena (eds) • Intergenerational Contact Zones (2020), M.Kaplan, L. Thang, M. Sanchez and J. Hoffman (eds) • “Communities for All Ages” in The Global Age-Friendly Community Movement, P. Stafford (ed).