Posted on October 21, 2020
“Mixing it up is the new cool.” said Donna Butts, executive director of Generations United, a Washington D.C. advocacy group that promotes programs and policies to connect people of different ages. “Getting generations together is the way to go, and the best way that we can build strong communities and make sure people are engaged…
Posted on October 5, 2020
“Nothing about us without us.”
That phrase – commonly used in the world of advocacy – was cited by one of the keynote speakers of the Age-Friendly Communities NJ: New Relevance…
Posted on September 28, 2020
There is no one path to becoming an age-friendly community – nor one mold to use. The age-friendly movement has footholds in urban, suburban and rural locales, sometimes encompassing a single community, other times a multi-town region. These efforts to…
Posted on September 20, 2020
Looking for partners in “unlikely places” is a good way to overcome the negative views of aging that are pervasive in our culture, as well as the tendency to view older adults as “a problem” in the community rather than as a useful reservoir of wisdom and skillsets…
Posted on September 3, 2020
In its advocacy work, The New Jersey Foundation for Aging routinely seeks to widen the lens that society trains on the lives and livelihoods of older adults, and the organization’s annual conference this year succeeded in doing just that, opening attendees’ eyes to the ways in which ageism is so widely normalized and internalized …
Posted on July 29, 2020
The loss of property tax reimbursements is just one potential blow to efforts to ensure low- and moderate-income older adults can afford to keep living independently in their own homes and apartments during this crisis. With federal and state renter protections potentially expiring, there are growing worries about widespread evictions in coming months…
Posted on July 17, 2020
These four towns – with their varied landscapes, histories and systems of government – are alike in two important ways: Their populations are aging, and their government and civic leaders recognize the importance of using an age-friendly lens to plan for the future. With the addition of these four new community initiatives, the network now encompasses 16 communities in five counties – Bergen, Essex, Morris, Passaic and Union – which together have a population of more than a half million people…
Posted on March 20, 2020
Age-Friendly leaders have tapped into community partnerships built over the past few years, trying to formulate new strategies for keeping older adults physically and emotionally healthy in the wake of suspended social service programs, cancelled recreational activities, interrupted transportation services, and growing food insecurity …
Posted on March 5, 2020
One of our alliance members, Age Friendly Ridgewood, has been working with residents and village leaders on developing an age-friendly vision for the community. A Feb. 27 article in northjersey.com outlined the important and forward-looking planning strategies being implemented by…
Posted on March 5, 2020
An OpEd written by Julia Stoumbos, director of aging-in-place programs for The Henry and Marilyn Taub Foundation and co-facilitator of North Jersey alliance of Age-Friendly Communities, was published Feb. 15 on nj.com. Here’s an excerpt: Too many New Jerseyans of…
Posted on February 5, 2020
An OpEd written by Julia Stoumbos, director of aging-in-place programs for The Henry and Marilyn Taub Foundation and co-facilitator of the North Jersey Alliance of Age-Friendly Communities, was published Jan. 30 on the NJ Spotlight news site: Here’s an excerpt:…
Posted on January 21, 2020
Many of the recent studies on social isolation show that it is increasing among all age groups. That’s happening in part because social media and digital communications are too often replacing face-to-face interaction, which is something that becomes a more essential ingredient of good health when people get older. A comprehensive study like this could offer more useful strategies to those who spend their days trying to serve isolated and homebound populations…
Posted on January 19, 2020
New Jersey – few will be surprised to hear – ranks among the country’s more expensive places for older adults to live. More than half of those over 65 and living alone in the Garden State – and nearly a quarter of elder couples – are classified as “economically insecure,” meaning they lack enough income for life’s basics …
Posted on October 31, 2019
For the first time in nearly a decade, New Jersey’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund has been fully funded. That was the good news that Staci Berger, president of the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, recently delivered to age-friendly community leaders. Starting in 2020, an estimated $60 million will be available …
Posted on October 30, 2019
Whether you’re enrolling in Medicare for the first time or a longtime beneficiary considering a switch to a new plan, all the experts give the same advice: Get some expert advice.…
Posted on October 28, 2019
Older adults in need of part-time work or retirees looking to stay active should consider applying for one of the 45,000 jobs the Census Bureau has yet to fill in New Jersey…
Posted on October 28, 2019
Federal programs that play a crucial role in the lives of many older adults – such as Medicare, Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and services provided under the Older Americans Act – rely on Census data to measure the extent of need within a geographic region…
Posted on September 13, 2019
County governments are important partners to have in the age-friendly community movement. Many age-friendly goals – from making communities more walkable to increasing housing and transportation options – need to be tackled at all levels of government…
Posted on September 2, 2019
The Taub Foundation and The Grotta Fund for Senior Care – with support and active participation from the AARP, the New Jersey Foundation on Aging, New Jersey Future and Rutgers University – have created a northern New Jersey alliance of community residents, local leaders, academics, and advocates, working to identify and address the needs of New Jersey’s aging population…
Posted on September 1, 2019
Many of New Jersey’s towns are great places to grow up. They also need to be good places to grow old, and here are Seven Reasons Why…