Communities for a Lifetime

Minnesota’s population is aging. In 2020, there will be more people over the age of 65 than children in school. By 2030, the Minnesota Department of Human Services expects that 1 in 4 people in Minnesota will be over the age of 65. This phenomenon is commonly characterized as “The Age Wave” as the population not only ages but people are also living longer.

Communities throughout Minnesota and the nation are preparing for the aging of the baby boom generation through intentional planning initiatives often referred to as "communities for a lifetime."

How can MAAA help cities and counties?

Resources & Models (All off site links)

AARP Livable Communities
A very extensive community evaluation guide provides step-by-step instructions to older adults who want to evaluate their community. There are eight components of the evaluation so that a community could focus on only a few of them in order to make the effort more manageable. The guide encourages partnership development and advocacy for concrete changes.

Administration on Aging Livable Communities For All Ages

AdvantAge Initiative
The AdvantAge Elder Friendly Community survey asks older adults what they think about the characteristics of their community, including: addressing basic needs, optimizing physical and mental health and well-being, maximizing independence and promoting social and civic engagement.

Aging Texas Well
The Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services encourages communities to undertake an assessment and planning process to prepare for an aging population. The focus is on developing components of the community to make it more supportive of and engaging for older adults.

Annie E. Casey Foundation
The Annie E. Casey Foundation began an initiative to broaden the scope of community planning efforts to include all age groups and, in part, focus on enhancing intergenerational connections. The broad framework and guiding principles speak to a total community approach to planning for changing demographic trends and their implications. But, the result of the locally funded efforts boiled down to new intergenerational programming and the building of intergenerational community centers.

Arizona Communities For All Ages

Asset Based Community Development Institute
The ABCD Institute has outlined a process through a community can map its assets – person, association and institution assets. These assets are mapped in the physical and economic context of the community. These assets are then mobilized to address community problems and build stronger communities. This process emphasizes calling upon marginalized individuals in the community, those who have been labeled, and includes older adults.

Carver County Health Partnership
CCHP is a collaborative effort (pdf) of local businesses, non-profits, community groups, concerned citizens, governments, and churches working together to make Carver County, Minnesota, a healthy place to live and work.

Cleveland Foundation's Successful Aging Initiative
The Cleveland Foundation began a multi-faceted initiative to promote successful aging in the Greater Cleveland Area in 2002. One component of this effort involves grant funding to communities to support their efforts to become Elder-Friendly Communities.

Florida's Communities For a Lifetime
The Florida Department of Elder Affairs sponsors a website and blueprint to guide community efforts to become Communities for a Lifetime. During the planning process, communities are to seek state guidance and review. At a later point the state assesses their status and may identify them as a Community for a Lifetime. There are now 100 communities identified as such around the state. The focus is on making communities more supportive of and engaging for older adults.

Jefferson Area Board for Aging
The Jefferson Area Board for Aging in Central Virginia was awarded a local grant from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. They developed a 2020 Community Plan for Aging. The process included gathering input from school age children and conducting community-wide focus groups. The result was a set of recommendations to improve services to older adults and enhance community features to better support a growing population of older adults.

Mankato's Envision 2020
Business and city officials called for a new community visioning and strategic planning process. As a result, a steering committee was developed and the National Civic League was hired to facilitate the Envision 2020 process. The process will include region building initiatives beyond Mankato and North Mankato. The process began in January 2005. Aging issues have been identified in several topic areas and shifting demographics as a factor to be aware of in planning for the future.

Minnesota Board on Aging
The Minnesota Board on Aging (MBA) is the gateway to services for seniors and their families. MBA listens to concerns, researches for solutions and proposes policy to address senior needs. In addition, MBA administers funds from the Older Americans Act that provide a spectrum of services to seniors including Senior LinkAge Line®, insurance counseling and more. First established in 1956, the MBA is one of the pioneers in the field of aging. It works closely with its area agencies on aging, which are located throughout the state to provide services that seniors need. The Board's 25 members are appointed by the governor.

National Association of Area Agencies on Aging Aging In Place Initiative

North Carolina's Livable Communities
The North Carolina Division of Aging and Adult Services launched the Senior Friendly and Livable Communities initiative with funding and technical assistance from the Administration on Aging through its planning grant program. The state, with community input, developed a broad framework of community components, sample community evaluation questions, and a vision for a senior friendly and livable community. The state provided three communities with small planning grants and provided assistance to these communities to identify a component to take action on.

Quality Growth Community Choices Toolkit
Atlanta’s Quality Growth Community Choices Toolkit is a set of modules developed by the regional development commission to guide/inform city-level efforts to plan and develop their communities. The Aging in Place component focuses on housing development and modifications, zoning and land use, transportation, walkability, and housing and service development.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Community Partnerships for Older Adults
The RWJF Community Partnerships are focused on bringing community members together to deal broadly with the changes that need to be made to prepare a community to provide long-term care to more older people in the future.

SEARCH Institute
The SEARCH Institute has identified a set of developmental assets for different age groups of children and youth. The SEARCH Institute outlines five action strategies to transform communities to be supportive of its children and youth (engage adults, activate sectors, mobilize young people, invigorate programs, and influence civic decisions).

Transform 2010
Transform 2010 is a project to prepare Minnesota for the coming age wave of baby boomers. It is a partnership between the Department of Human Services and the Minnesota Board on Aging, the Department of Health and other state agencies. Specifically, the project is identifying the impacts of the aging of Minnesota’s population on the state, and developing a plan with both short- and long-term goals to transform our infrastructures and services, so that Minnesota can support a permanent change in the age of our state’s population.

Vital Aging Network
Through the Vital Aging Network (VAN), people share information, build partnerships, and work collaboratively to promote and support the self-sufficiency, community participation, and quality of life of older adults.

Updated 02/09/2007