We All are Europe - AESAEC

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Therefore, we thought the conceptual framework of the AESAEC training programme should include not only knowledge about European institutions and policies concerning older people and knowledge about how a project proposal is shaped. We thought that students in later life involved in preparing a European project proposal should start by increasing knowledge about themselves and their position in society and also learn more about how they can contribute towards changing society for the better. I.2. Towards understanding old age, senior citizens’ needs and issues and their active role in the community In most Western European countries old age did not emerge as a political and social issue until the 1950s. After the Second World War, Europe was mainly interested in repairing the damage and looking towards the future focussing on the younger generations, often forgetting about older people. Older people were portrayed by social stereotypes as passive not interested in any kind of participation in society. In the AESAEC project and training we are interested in the new European attitudes towards older people and new European approaches towards participation of senior citizens in community life and education associated with it. In addition we are interested in examples of good practice in this field as a source of learning. 14 An active senior citizen who is ready to devise a European project proposal, prepare an application and eventually implement the project, if the proposal is successful, should have knowledge about the existing frame programmes and above all should be familiar with values and concepts concerning older people, old age, the style of life of older people, pension schemes, active ageing and other policies, the right to a pension and the right to work, the right to social security, flexible security, etc. Moreover, he or she should also know about the European institutions and policies that concern older people and their relationships with other generations as well as the most important European non-governmental organisations dealing with the issues of older people. He or she should be aware that older people are not all the same, as actually they are all different, much more different than the members within the younger generations and therefore he or she should stand for the right to be different in later life, to have his or her own style of life, to be differently treated by policies, etc.. Not all older people are patients and their ageing is not necessarily pathological, but rather normal, not all older people are poor, not all older people are helpless or functionally illiterate. An active senior citizen should therefore stand up against the discourse of weakness and dependence adopted in most policies, by the media, public statements and other texts about people in later life. Moreover, not all older people are grandmothers and grandfathers, as they can have different social roles. They can be workers, volunteers, learners, etc. They differ according to the status they have in society. They have different needs if they are employed or not, if they are volunteers or not, if they live alone or in a family, if they have a partner or not, if they have managed to create a large or a small social network, if in their network younger people are included, if this network is a source of emotional support and information, that is an open network, or if it is
The conceptual framework closed one consisting mainly of family members. They differ if they have health concerns or not, if they are men or women, if they are well educated or not. They differ because the course of their life and their social roles have been very different. They have a different style of life. They differ according to these and other criteria but they are least different because of their different ages. Age may be an important factor with youngsters growing up, but not adults! It is time to free ourselves from these views and stereotypes about older people. Consequently, policies concerning older people are not free of these views and stereotypes and an older citizen devising a European project proposal should be aware of them and should not repeat them while preparing a project proposal. This does not seem to be an easy task, since stereotypes about old age are often consolidated by older people themselves. Consolidating stereotypes does not help in creating a new image of older people who are well engaged in community matters and contributing towards different policies. Combating stereotypes can be an important task to be tackled by European projects concerning older people. Such projects should be ambitious, conceptual, accompanied by intensive public campaigning and possibly they should be intergenerational. Older people should not be applauded just because they have reached the age of eighty or more, and shall we say, use computers or because they try to live imitating younger people. They should be applauded for their contribution, for having achieved something valuable for themselves and the community. Government policies in many European countries concerning old age and ageing currently develop mostly in three directions: a permanent dialogue with those who have just retired and are aware of their own impending old age and old age as it is today for those who have been retired for some time development of services in close collaboration with families and their neighbourhood creation of opportunities for older people to be, on an equal basis with other generations, a part of the community. Most problems arise within this last area. Why Because older people are predominately regarded as being dependent and in need of help from others. Moreover European policies often develop in the same way , with a great deal of consulting NGOs and individual senior citizens at different stages of the period called between work retirement and old age. I.3. The changing society Senior citizens planning to engage in European projects are expected to have an in depth view of the major social changes affecting all generations and the relationships between them. Enlightened adaptation to these and other changes in society and within communities can be a topic and aim of European projects. What are the major changes in society affecting all generations 15
Page 1: We All We All are Europe Participat
Page 4 and 5: Publisher/Editor: AESAEC Project Gr
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Attendance List for Project Meeting
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AESAEC - Glossary AESAEC - Glossary
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AESAEC - Glossary European Economic
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AESAEC - Glossary mostly operating
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AESAEC - Glossary Think tanks Valor
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We All are Europe - AESAEC

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