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Help Older Adults Stay Connected

A snapshot of insights and actions for organizations

Exclusive Insights

We spoke to eight leading Canadian organizations dedicated to fostering connections across generations. Here are six tips we learned from them on how to build community:

Engage Our Network

Use inclusive language to emphasize the strengths of the community

Identify Ideas & Innovations

Work with other sectors to amplify and scale solutions

Innovative Solutions

Nurture ongoing relationships between generations

Engage Our Network

Establish age-inclusive policies in spaces, places, and programs

Identify Ideas & Innovations

Promote a culture of caring within communities

Innovative Solutions

Facilitate engagement and dialogue across organizations, communities, and people

What You Can Do: Ideas to Promote
Age-Inclusive Connections

To Connect with Individuals

  • Help older adults explore the resources available to them e.g., cognitive behaviour therapy, social prescribing, social workers
  • Build new connections with all ages e.g., neighbourhood-organized programs, arts initiatives, sports
  • Equip older adults with tools to stay connected e.g., digital litracy workshops, volunteer training

To Connect within the Community

  • Create opportunities that are driven by a shared sense of purpose e.g., volunteering, emergency preparedness
  • Create and advocate for environments that promote connections e.g., housing, transportation, public spaces, and digital access

How to Integrate Social Connections in your Work

  • Prioritize social connectedness at the start of your projects
  • Create opportunities for purposeful social interaction and engagement
  • Ensure connections are accessible to all
  • Work with community partners
  • Consider your audience’s demographics and needs
  • Raise awareness about social connectedness and share resources

Get Inspired & Learn

Social Connection Guidelines

Social Connection Guidelines

Canadian Alliance for Social Connection and Health, GenWell Project, Public Health Agency of Canada
Social Connectedness Action Guide

Social Connectedness Action Guide

BC Healthy Communities Society and the British Columbia Ministry of Health
Supporting your Neighbours: A Community Conversation Guide

Supporting your Neighbours: A Community Conversation Guide

Schlegel-UW Research Institute on Aging
Innovations for Healthy Aging

Connecting Generations

planning and implementing interventions for intergenerational contact
Senior Friendly 7 Toolkit

Senior Friendly 7 Toolkit

 

Working Together for Seniors

Working Together for Seniors

A Toolkit To Promote Seniors’ Social Integration In Community Services, Programs And Policies Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers Responsible For Seniors

Sources:
1. Matthews L. Promising approaches revisited [Internet]. Campaign to End Loneliness. 2023. Available from: https://www.campaigntoendloneliness.org/tackling-loneliness/promising-approaches-revisited/
2. World Health Organization. Social isolation and loneliness among older people: Advocacy brief [Internet]. 2019. Available from: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240030749
3. Inclusive Healthy Places: A Guide to Inclusion & Health in Public Space [Internet]. Gehl Institute. 2018. Available from: https://gehlinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Inclusive-Healthy-Places_Gehl-Institute.pdf
4. Samuel K. On belonging: Finding connection in an age of isolation. Abrams Press; 2022. 5. CMHA York. Community Framework to End Chronic Loneliness. 2023