Ageing Well in Urban Environments: Developing Age Friendly Cities and Communities

Population ageing and increasing urbanisation are two dominant societal trends of the 21st Century. By 2030 two-thirds of the global population will be living in cities and at least a quarter of those urban populations will be aged over 60. Developing urban environments that support and promote healthy living for older people has become a key driver of urban policy and interventions at a local and national level, resulting in planning design concepts and guidelines to support an ageing population. However, current urban planning and development models have overlooked how environments can support a sense of place, articulated through supports for active living, social participation and making a positive contribution to the community. Ageing successfully at home and in the community requires people are able to access 'assets and resources' to support healthy ageing, e.g. transport, adequate housing, healthcare services, and leisure opportunities alongside social networks and opportunities for lifelong learning.

Responding to these challenges, this research intends to answer the following research questions: How do older adults experience ageing and sense of place across different urban, social and cultural contexts? In what ways can urban environments support the rights of older people to age in place? What would age-friendly cities and communities look like if they are to support the sense of place needs of older adults living across different urban and cultural contexts? In answering these questions, this research builds upon an existing ESRC Urban Transformations grant (ES/N013220/1) being undertaken exploring how sense of place is experienced by older adults living in 18 neighbourhoods (of varying densities and income levels) across six case study cities in the UK (Edinburgh, Manchester and Glasgow) and Brazil (Pelotas, Porto Alegre, and Brasilia). The aim of the proposed research is to expand transnational understandings of ageing in urban environments to three case study cities in India (Delhi, Calcutta, Hyderabad). This will offer a unique insight into how older adults experience ageing and place across diverse and transformative urban environments in India, providing opportunities for knowledge exchange, allowing for comparative analysis within and across case study cities in India, UK and Brazil, and identifying clear routes to policy and practice.

We will use a range of methods to achieve the project aims including sense of place surveys and semi-structured interviews alongside experiential methods including 'go along' walks, photo diaries and community mapping exercises to capture the place-based needs of older adults. A community-based participatory approach will be adopted to the research, bringing together all stakeholders in a process of collaborative dialogue and co-design to challenge the hierarchical power relationships that exist when planning 'for' and not 'with' older people. The results will be used to co-create place-making tools and resources which are essential for designing age friendly environments for older adults in India that work across different cultural, social and welfare contexts. Findings will be disseminated to community, policymaker, practitioner and academic audiences through ongoing and end of project knowledge translation activities. Opportunities are built into the project design to allow for researchers from India, UK and Brasil to come together to exchange findings, share methodological insights and shape the research process.

The role of urban environments in supporting a high quality of life in old age is central to current policy and practice debates. However, the existing evidence base is weak in terms of how ageing and place is experienced across rapidly expanding urban contexts undermining the success of age-friendly initiatives. This study will generate the first comprehensive and independent evidence base on how older adults experience ageing across nine cities and 27 neighbourhoods in India, UK and Brazil and the type of responses that are required at a city and community level. Outputs will become primary reference points for a broad range of stakeholders, informing the development of policy and practice in the areas of age friendly communities and healthy cities, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of interventions to support older adults. The emergent research will be of great value to local authorities who have responsibility for implementing age-friendly policy and practice, national networks of age-friendly cities and communities (e.g. Global Network of Age-friendly Cities), nongovernmental organisations, charities and community groups. It is also likely to be of great interest to policymakers and practitioners internationally where the ageing population is a global challenge that both developed and developing countries need to respond to. The project will create the necessary tools and resources in terms of design guidelines and recommendations for use and application by practitioners who require well-designed and evidenced interventions. Outputs will become primary reference points for an array of stakeholders, and will benefit policy makers and practitioners working across a spectrum of fields (ageing and older adults, the built environment, urban regeneration, architecture and urban design, community planning and development) at national and local levels in India, UK and Brazil.

The long-term aim is to influence regional and national policy on ageing through an age friendly cities and communities agenda that addresses healthy and active aging in India, UK, Brazil and internationally. The project will develop the skills and capacity among project partners, older adults and community organisations in India, UK and Brazil to lay the foundation for positive change including: shared knowledge and expertise, partnership working and collaborative tools and resources. First, the project will embed the necessary partnership working at a city level (within the respective case study sites) between older adults, policy makers and practitioners to ensure positive future outcomes. The project will contribute to changed attitudes among the partners involved ensuring that future practices (in terms of place design, management, and sustainability) in their respective local and national contexts are shaped around the place-based needs of older adults. Second, the project will bring about changed attitudes and working practices among the academic and non-academic partners involved. This will have positive impact in terms of creating the dialogue and platform for more sympathetic, user-led forms of urban planning and design to emerge. The collaborative nature of the research activities will challenge existing 'ways of doing' encouraging urban practitioners to look towards more collaborative forms of planning. The close involvement of partners in local and regional government will ensure the project has impact on the development of policy and practice moving forward, for example through sharing the research evidence, participatory approaches and resources developed as a result of the project. More broadly, the tools and resources developed will work towards creating places and communities that will have a positive impact on the health and well-being of older adults. Older adults will benefit long-term from the development of urban environments that support people to age actively and independently within their communities.