Articles
The Journal on Active Aging brings articles of value to professionals dedicated to older-adult quality of life. Content sweeps across the active-aging landscape to focus on education and practice. Find articles of interest by searching the article archives in three ways: Enter a keyword in the articles search bar; click on search by topic; or type a keyword or phrase in the general search bar at the top of the page.
Topic- Community design
Support spiritual wellness through creative outdoor design by Jack Carman, FASLA, and Nancy Carman, MA, CMC
Wellness—it’s a concept we are instinctively drawn to. As health and wellness professionals, to instill wellness in a community or facility, we need to break it down into various components to help us understand its role in creating positive quality of life. Of all the dimensions of wellness—physical, social, intellectual, emotional, spiritual and vocational—spiritual wellness may be the most personal and possibly the hardest for us to quantify. Yet spiritual wellness is also the dimension that adds depth and meaning to the other five.
What does spiritual wellness mean? In 1975, the term “spiritual well-being” was defined by the National Interfaith Coalition on Aging, a National Council on Aging special interest group, as “the affirmation of life in relationship with God, self, community and environment that nurtures and celebrates wholeness.” The spiritual aspect of wellness, as defined by the National Wellness Institute, “recognizes our search for meaning and purpose in human existence.” It is a lifelong journey in which we seek ways that demonstrate “values through behaviors, such as meditation, prayer and contemplation of life/death, as well as appreciating beauty, nature and life.”
Community design
Healthy communities, active lifestyles
For 40 years, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has worked to protect the health of Americans and safeguard the environment in which they live, learn and work. EPA’s Aging Initiative, which focuses on older-adult health, spearheads a national recognition program for communities that are also striving to do both—the annual Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards. In February 2011, the agency named four recipients of its 2010 awards competition. These winning communities are improving people’s health and overall quality of life through smart growth neighborhoods, which are designed to reduce commutes and environmental harm—and promote active lifestyles.
moreCommunity design
The development process by Donald DeMars, AIA, IIDA
Let me first explain that I was asked to write this article about the phase in the development process that begins with the acquisition and preparation of the property, the hiring of the design team, the selection of the contractor, and the building of the project. This invitation assumed that my chosen methodology in development is consistent with this traditional approach toward completing a project. In this approach, the developer completes a feasibility study and business plan, obtains the financing, then moves forward with purchasing the property, qualifying and hiring the design team, designing the project, and qualifying and hiring a contractor through bidding or negotiating a cost-plus contract. Finally, the developer builds the project.
moreCommunity design
Great expectations: the making of an age-friendly wellness center by Colin Milner
Five to 10 years ago, if you wished to serve the age 50-plus market, your main frame of reference was what was happening in the fitness club industry. Today’s frame of reference is much broader, with excellent best practice models in seniors housing, active adult communities, seniors centers, hospital fitness centers, YMCAs and JCCs, to name a few.
We have learned a lot about promoting active aging in these past 10 years. One thing we have discovered is that we spend too much money on trying to educate the older population about being fit and healthy. Among age 50-plus adults surveyed by AARP, 98% of respondents knew that getting enough exercise was important, and 64% agreed that physical activity was the best thing they could do for their health. This level of awareness means that marketers do not have to establish need with this market, but rather show how they provide a solution that will help potential clients overcome the barriers to entry.
Community design
Vital communities: the promise of 'New Urbanism' in seniors housing by Richard L. Peck
Every so often I have this fantasy of living the urban highlife downtown. My well-appointed condo would have a view of Lake Erie and I’d be able to walk to world-class stores, stadiums, restaurants and theaters. As it happens, my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio—laughingly called “the most miserable city in America” by Forbes.com—just might be one of the most walkable cities in the nation. It is certainly one of the most compact. Within several city blocks lie Cleveland’s major league sports facilities, four-star restaurants, a Terminal Tower shopping center, science museum, Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame, and theater district. And a brand new trolley line now connects the downtown with the important uptown venues of Cleveland State University, the Cleveland Playhouse, Severance Hall (home of the Cleveland Orchestra), Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic.
moreCommunity design
Walkability audit tool
This tool was prepared as part of the Healthier Worksite Initiative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While initially developed for employers, the concepts and tool are equally valuable for surveying the campus of a retirement community or the area surrounding a community center or wellness center.
Physical activity programs in active aging are directed to older adults. However, an increasing number of ICAA members are making the wellness program available to staff members because wellness programs can lower absenteeism and increase employee satisfaction. When using the walkability audit tool, consider both the client and the staff members.
