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Aging Age-Friendly Communities & Policies

Making the Most of the Later Years

Republic of Ireland | 2007 - 2012

To help the Republic of Ireland better serve the needs of its fast-growing population of older adults, Atlantic made investments to support the development of age-friendly policies. This includes enabling older adults to:

  • Have a real say in what happens in their own lives and what happens in the areas in which they live.
  • Enjoy good quality of life, access to excellent services, and a secure and enabling environment.
  • Be engaged and have opportunities to participate fully in everything that is going on in their cities and counties.
Watch: The Netwell Centre, based at the Dundalk Institute of Technology, is developing new ideas that enhance the quality of life and well-being of older people and those who care for them.

What We Learned From This Work

  1. An idea that starts as a pilot can lead to lasting change if funders are willing to stick with it over a long period of time and allow opportunities for experimentation, growth and collaboration from within and outside the field.

  2. When entering an emerging field, it is essential to work with and support executive-level leaders who are committed to the goals and can exercise authority needed to move an agenda forward.

  3. To ensure the voices of older people are reflected in decisions about policies and services affecting them, funders must invest in baseline studies, underwrite training in effective advocacy and provide ongoing opportunities to shape the agenda.

New Approaches Emerge for Serving Older Adults

Here are some accomplishments from Atlantic’s grantees to promote age-friendly policies and communities:

Raising Voices for Change

Older and Bolder’s advocacy contributed to the designation of a Minister of State with responsibility for older people and a public commitment by government to develop a national strategy on aging.

Aging Policy Done Well

Created by Atlantic in 2007, the Ageing Well Network played a major role over six years advancing the development of age-friendly policies in the Republic of Ireland, including the country’s first National Positive Ageing Strategy.

Pitching in Together

A key Atlantic initiative, Age-Friendly Cities & Counties, voluntarily brought together local government, police, health care providers, businesses, community groups and older people themselves to develop age-friendly strategies.

Summaries of Case Studies, Evaluations & Reports

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