In this issue of The Creative Aging Resource Journal, you’ll find stories from across the West, each one offering a unique perspective on creative aging. We begin with an interview with Emily Christensen, a creative aging coordinator and music therapist in Utah. Emily shares her journey into creative aging and how her music therapy background informs her approach. She discusses the distinctions between creative aging and art therapy and offers insights from her work with individuals experiencing dementia.
Browse “Government Agencies (State)”
New Initiative Catalyzes State-Level Partnerships to Advance Creative Aging in Western States
Cross-sector, state-level partnerships are key to sustaining and ensuring access to creative aging programming, especially for older adults in rural communities. Research shows that these arts education programs contribute significantly to healthy aging and increased social connection. The Advancing Creative Aging in Westerns States Initiative, launched in 2023, is designed to deepen and sustain collaboration among state agency partners to advance creative aging in the Western region. Currently the Initiative includes partnership teams in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Wyoming, and Utah. These teams include leaders from state arts agencies, state libraries, and state veterans services, and will expand to include aging services and health and human services.
Lifetime Arts will provide consulting services and information resources for multiple stakeholders across these state agencies. These resources are designed to support new and existing partnerships across state agencies and their constituent organizations. Lifetime Arts also is supporting the development and implementation of up to five creative aging programs in sector-specific host organizations in each state. These programs will serve a total of 500 older adults and help to demonstrate the benefits and efficacy of creative aging.
Creative Aging Programs & Resources From NASAA
From the Website:
Older adults have vital contributions to make to society as creators and community members. Abundant evidence shows that arts participation improves the emotional well-being of older adults, supports good health, strengthens social bonds, and brings a heightened experience of purpose and joy to our lives as we mature. However, older adults all too often experience the effects of ageism, isolation and limited access to meaningful arts learning experiences. State arts agencies can help to address these gaps by facilitating creative aging programming as an antidote to isolation, an affirmation of life and a pathway to flourishing for older adults.
From Training to Practice: Embedding Creative Aging in Our States (NASAA Panel)
From the YouTube Video Description:
Every state’s plan for serving older adults through meaningful arts engagement will (and should) look different. Creative aging programs thrive when they are rooted in authentic collaboration and are responsive to the distinct needs and contexts of our communities. As part of NASAA’s Leveraging State Investments in Creative Aging Initiative, Lifetime Arts partnered with 22 state arts agencies to support their visions for prioritizing creative aging in their statewide arts education missions and services for older adults. Through training and coaching, multi-stakeholder teams deepened their understanding of creative aging best practices and how to approach common challenges. Join staff from Lifetime Arts, Ohio Arts Council, and Utah Division of Arts & Museums for a dynamic and honest conversation about key takeaways and lessons learned that can help you grow creative aging programming in your state.
Presenters:
- Jason Bowcutt, Community Programs & Performing Arts Manager, Utah Division of Arts & Museums
- Tracy Hansford, Community Programs Coordinator, Utah Division of Arts & Museums
- Julie Kline, Director of Education and Training, Lifetime Arts
- Annie Montgomery, Senior Education Designer and Trainer, Lifetime Arts
- Chiquita Mullins Lee, Arts Learning Coordinator, Ohio Arts Council
- Jarred Small, Arts Learning Coordinator, Ohio Arts Council
- Moderator: Heather Ikemire, Deputy Director, Lifetime Arts
Creative Aging: Drawing on the Arts to Enhance Healthy Aging
From the abstract:
The term “creative aging,” in the broadest sense, describes an aging policy idea that focuses on highlighting the creativity of older adults in order to prepare individuals and communities to manage old age. Programs focus on the evolution of creativity over the lifespan and aim to provide meaningful participatory engagement, especially through the arts.
Social Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation in Aging
From the abstract:
Social entrepreneurship is usually understood as an economic activity which focuses at social values, goals, and investments that generates surpluses for social entrepreneurs as individuals, groups, and startups who are working for the benefit of communities, instead of strictly focusing mainly at the financial profit, economic values, and the benefit generated for shareholders or owners. Social entrepreneurship combines the production of goods, services, and knowledge in order to achieve both social and economic goals and allow for solidarity building.
From a broader perspective, entities that are focused on social entrepreneurship are identified as parts of the social and solidarity economy. These are, for example, social enterprises, cooperatives, mutual organizations, self-help groups, charities, unions, fair trade companies, community enterprises, and time banks. Social innovation is a key element of social entrepreneurship.
Social innovation is usually understood as new strategies, concepts, products, services, and organizational forms that allow for the satisfaction of needs. Such innovations are created in particular in the contact areas of various sectors of the social system. For example, these are spaces between the public sector, the private sector, and civil society. These innovations not only allow the solving of problems but also extend possibilities for public action.
Perspectives and Theories of Social Innovation for Ageing Population
From the abstract:
In recent years we may observe increasing interest in the development of social innovation both regarding theory as well as the practice of responding to social problems and challenges. One of the crucial challenges at the beginning of the 21st century is population ageing. Various new and innovative initiatives, programs, schemes, and projects to respond to negative consequences of this demographic process are emerging around the world.
In this Research Topic, we welcome papers critically evaluating the existing social perspectives and theories in the field of ageing, introducing innovative approaches and comparative studies. We welcome researchers from areas such as sociology, pedagogy, public policy, economics, management, and public health. The contributions can be based on theoretical studies as well as the implementation of social innovation and programs addressed at ageing and older people. Reviews and papers on philosophical and ethical issues are also welcome.
Generations, Intergenerational Relationships, Generational Policy: A Multilingual Compendium – Edition 2017
From the abstract:
The members of the International Network for the Analysis of Intergenerational Relations (Generationes) proudly present the most recent issue of the jointly produced compendium “Generations, Intergenerational Relations and Generational Policy.” The compendium presents and discusses the key concepts of intergenerational research in a systematic way. Its approach is characterized by the assumption that the forms of intergenerational relationships in families and kinship, institutions and communities is playing a fundamental role in the construction of individual and collective identities, and therefore in the development of societies. A cross-cultural, comparative approach accounting for linguistic diversity provides a promising avenue for theoretical, empirical and practical work in this currently crucially field for the social sciences, humanities and social policy.
This new version includes 17 languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Hungarian, Turkish, Romanian, Lithuanian, Slovenian (new), Bosnian (new), Ukrainian (new), Russian (new) and Chinese (new).
Complete List of Contributors:
Aging in the Social Space
A publication called, “Aging in the Social Space” is a compilation of studies, which deal with theoretical understanding and empirical solutions, learning about problem spheres, specifying content parallels of social, legal, economic, moral and ethical views on senior issues in society, which are closely related to each other and are interconnected. This publication focuses on the case study of Poland. It is supposed to provide a multidimensional view of old age issues and issues related to aging and care for old people in society. We believe that it is natural also to name individual spheres, in which society has some eff ect, either direct or indirect, within issues concerning seniors. Learning about these spheres is the primary prerequisite for successful use of social help to seniors in society.
Delaware Division of the Arts — Delaware Creative Aging Pilot (2021-2022)
The Access Creative Aging initiative, in partnership with the Delaware Division of Libraries, is designed to provide Delaware’s older population with opportunities for artistic expression, social interaction, and enhanced mental and physical health through meaningful engagement in the arts.
This initiative is part of the larger project, Leveraging State Investments in Creative Aging, supported by the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) and E.A. Michelson Philanthropy. Lifetime Arts trained and coached Delaware teaching artists and librarians in program design and implementation as part of this initiative.