Abstract
The specter of an aging population and the attendant challenges that this will present for community planning has been a focus of popular and academic discourse for a number of decades. To support the City of Waterloo’s Advisory Committee on Age-Friendly Cities, the authors conducted in-depth interviews with older Waterloo residents to document their experiences of aging in Waterloo and conceptions of an age-friendly city. Participants clearly and predictably described the various sources of environmental press which they encounter in their homes and neighborhoods, which test their competence and capacity to age independently. Of greater interest, however, was the challenge of coping with various forms of “social press” including ageism. Participants disclosed problematic attitudes and behaviors of younger community residents that socially isolate, provoke anxiety, or result in physical stress or injury.
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Lewis, J.L., Groh, A. (2016). It’s About the People…: Seniors’ Perspectives on Age-Friendly Communities. In: Moulaert, T., Garon, S. (eds) Age-Friendly Cities and Communities in International Comparison. International Perspectives on Aging. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24031-2_6
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