Citizen and Community Leadership
Successful and healthy aging involves situating yourself in the right communities, with the type of housing and types of supports! As your community explores the types of housing and supportive services you want and need, establishing collaborative partnerships will expand your available resources.
Gaps in the Housing Options for Successful Aging in Your Community
Many older adults are noticing big gaps in the types of housing options within their communities. Many people want to stay in the dwelling they have lived in for several years, which often requires adaptation for aging in place. Or, some older adults want to downsize or move to a rental situation in the familiar the town, city, or neighbourhood that they love.
Given the general housing shortages, it is difficult for people of all ages to find the right housing in their area. Community groups are forming and working housing developers and architects to generate smaller scale, accessible, sustainable, and socially-designed housing models that enable older adults to remain longer in their dwelling, should they choose. With the right housing, one can add the right supports, over time.
Emerging Models of Network-Based or Clustered Supports for Aging Well
An emerging model of co-organizing services in a building or location is called the “Naturally Occurring Retirement Community” (NORC). This happens when approximately 35% of the residents in a building or geographic area are over the age of 65. In this situation, the older residents can collaboratively lead the planning to organize various social activities, support services or other desired activities. If you are interested in getting started with this type of model in your building, check out the resources for NORC Ambassadors: Home | NORC (norcambassadors.ca)
Collaborative Aging helped shape the latest Policy Report on NORC Model in Canada: Check it out at: It’s Time to Unleash the Power of Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities in Canada — National Institute on Ageing (niageing.ca)
The OASIS Project: In Canada, one of the first groups to create a NORC-based model was group of seniors living in Kingston Ontario, within a commercial rental building that they loved. The older adults wanted to stay safe there, so they created their own social support network (called “OASIS”). They collaborated with their private landlord to adapt a common space within the building. They also set up partnerships with different providers (e.g. a caterer, or a shopping helper, or a social agency) to bring in the types of services they needed. For more info on the growing number of OASIS Aging Well sites in Canada, visit: https://www.oasisagingwell.com/
Hospices Palliative Care Settings and Compassionate Communities. In Canada, community and residential hospices are a growing model for holistically supporting people with life-limiting illnesses, and at the end of their lives. This holistic approach also supports family/friend caregivers with grief and bereavement supports as well. In some communities, the hospice community has become a movement – such as Compassionate Communities: Compassionate Communities – Pallium Canada