Earlier this month we marked the 34th United Nations International Day of Older Persons – also known as UNIDOP.
Designated by the United Nations General Assembly in 1990 and observed on 1 October every year, this UNIDOP serves to acknowledge the contributions of older adults across the globe, address the issues affecting the experience of ageing, and highlight the distinct hurdles they encounter.
This year, UNIDOP focused on three clear objectives.
First, to elevate global awareness and comprehension of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. By strengthening human rights protection and mobilising stakeholders to enhance protections for older adults across the globe, we may safeguard the rights of current and future generations of older adults.
We must consider the cumulative and continuous experiences and contexts in which that life is being lived
Second, to promote intergenerational models that enable the exchange of knowledge and experiences among different age groups.
In 2023, AAG’s national conference featured a workshop on intergenerational practice highlighting the many benefits, including breaking down ageism and fostering a sense of solidarity between generations.
Finally, the third objective of this year’s UNIDOP focused on a life course approach to ageing that supports individual and community wellbeing at all ages.
As a social gerontologist, I’m particularly interested in the life course perspective as a framework for understanding life-span development, human agency, historical time and place, timing and linked lives.
Put another way – and paraphrasing from a 2012 paper by Hendricks – to make sense of any given period of a person’s life, we must consider the cumulative and continuous experiences and contexts in which that life is being lived.
As we’d expect, the objectives of the 2024 UNIDOP align with the four main actions areas of the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing 2021-2030:
- combatting ageism
- age-friendly environments
- integrated care
- and long-term care.
These all require a solid evidence base to inform the implementation of improvements from theory into practice.
Only when research, policy and practice are aligned can we hope to achieve a vision of a world where every person is valued, heard, seen and respected as we age.
Dr Claudia Meyer is president of the Australian Association of Gerontology
More stakeholder views from this edition
- Patricia Sparrow: The Aged Care Act – does it go far enough?
- Tom Symondson: Providers are focused on improving the lives of seniors
- Ian Yates: Bill must pass before Christmas
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