Welcome to the Aging and Climate Change Clearinghouse’s Insight & Ideas blog! Our goal is to provide a broad range of information, ideas, and inspiration on the intersection of climate change and the rapidly increasing older population.
There’s no disputing the earth’s climate is warming. The eight warmest years in the historical record have occurred since 2014. Scientists across the globe are documenting melting glaciers, rising ocean levels, and more severe weather patterns. At the same time, another social phenomenon is occurring: the global population is aging at an increasingly fast pace. By 2050, the number of people aged 60 and older will reach more than 2 billion – double what it is today.
Despite accumulating data on these topics individually, researchers have only recently begun to investigate the intersection of these two massive trends. The questions are many: How will climate change affect older adults? What role does the older generations play in contributing to climate change? Perhaps most important, what can they older people do to help prevent and mitigate climate change?
This blog offers you a front row seat as researchers strive to answer these questions, organizations create programs and policies to address them, and individuals get inspired and mobilize to take action.
Here, you will find summaries of the latest research on climate change and aging. We will profile the researchers who are discovering new information on these topics, and how they relate to each other. We will highlight organizations who are working on the ground to promote healthy aging and protect the climate. And we’ll share the voices of older adults who are dedicating their days to addressing climate change head-on.
Our hope is that we can provide you with information, personal stories, and tangible connections that inspire you to take action in your own way to address climate change. Along the way, we’d love to connect with you. Please feel free to tell us more about your research or organization, or share your own journey of climate action on our Submit Your Story page.