Agefriendly pullout (april2017)

Making Guelph a great place to live and age well

Guelph.ca/agefriendly

Building an Age Friendly City Age-friendly cities create supportive social and physical environments that enable older-adults to live active, safe, meaningful lives, and continue to contribute in all areas of community life.

Becoming an age-friendly city is an ongoing process. In June 2012, the City of Guelph undertook the development of an Older Adult Strategy using the World Health Organization’s (WHO) age-friendly cities framework. A project steering committee comprised of older adults, representatives from organizations serving seniors, and municipal staff was formed to help guide the development of the strategy.

The Strategy was developed based on extensive consultations, using a framework consistent with the WHO’s Dimensions of Age-Friendliness: outdoor spaces and buildings, transportation, housing, social participation, respect and social inclusion, civic participation and employment, communication and

information, community support and health supports. In November 2012, City of Guelph Council approved the Goal, Vision and Guiding Principles of the Older Adult Strategy (OAS). Guelph is committed to becoming age-friendly in each of these areas by 2025.

Age Friendly Guelph is an exciting initiative and opportunity for Guelph citizens to learn more and assist in creating an age-friendly city. The population of Guelph will continue to grow, and by 2031, close to 30% of individuals living in Guelph will be age 55 or older (Hemson, 2012). The impact of this demographic shift on the design and delivery of municipal services presents both opportunities and challenges.

What is an age-friendly community?

An age-friendly community is a place where people can age and live with respect, dignity, independence and access to physical / social services. The WHO identifies it as “a place that treats

everyone with respect, regardless of their age.� Guelph is a great community that encourages citizens to participate in healthy living and activities, for all ages. However, there are barriers that remain such as affordable housing, respect for diversity, social inclusion, as well as access to spaces and services.

One of the greatest challenges is how people perceive and treat olderadults and seniors, as well as the stigma associated with ageing which is referred to as ‘ageism’.

How can you help make a positive difference?

Our vision is for Guelph to be an age-friendly community that: • Values and supports older-adults • Optimizes opportunity for choice, independence, and quality of life • Celebrates diversity • Is inclusive of all, reducing inequities (is fair and just)

Susan Brown, AFGLT member and Liz Cunningham of Age Friendly BusinessÂŽ. (photo by Ross Knechtel, webmaster, GWSA)

Support the Older Adult Strategy’s goal to make Guelph a great place to live and age well by spreading the news about Age Friendly Guelph, making your businesses age-friendly or getting involved as a volunteer.

For more information visit Guelph.ca/agefriendly

The good word to support Guelph!

As owner of Venture Guelph Ltd., I pride myself on giving back to Guelph by passingit-forward. Our community needs to shift the conversations around older-adults, and adopt a new seniors lens to validate the positive impact and influence that older-adults offer to our community, both economically and socially. Too often, perception is a barrier that inhibits people of all ages to acknowledge the incredible value and contributions older-adults and seniors bring to our City. I support the goal and vision of Age Friendly Guelph by providing opportunities to spread the good word because I care about making Guelph a great place to live and age well. – Mike Baker, Publisher

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2017 Age Friendly Guelph Bench Project

by Karen McElroy, Age Friendly Guelph Leadership Team member, CEO Boardroom Metrics Inc.

Like a modern-day town-crier I am thrilled that in 2017 we can use both paper and social media to alert our citizens to exciting new initiatives and projects within our community. Today the Age Friendly Guelph Leadership Team (AFGLT) is pleased to launch the 2017 Age Friendly Guelph Bench Project.

The 2017 AFG Bench Project is a key initiative of Age Friendly Guelph (AFG). It’s also a priority project for our 150th Canadian Confederation Anniversary. The City of Guelph is a proud member of the forward-thinking (WHO) World Health Organizations’ commitment to build an age-ready and age-friendly community.

Community Benches are a social innovation tool that helps connect our citizens and remove barriers. They help eliminate social isolation. Whether you are a toddler, adolescent, teenager, adult or senior you can participate on this project and feel part of our community.

Encouraging everyone of every age to get out and about in Guelph, is about making our city accessible and inclusive. The AFG Bench Project fits into this positive goal.

By making it easy for people to walk, rest, talk, even meet new people in our city, it has been shown that citizens will participate. Results in London, Calgary, Kingston and Kelowna have been monumental.

We are often asked, what can one BENCH do?

We think EVERYTHING and more!

Here’s how just one bench can be used: • Sit on • Meet on • Sponsor a Business

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

Commemorate a family member Recognize a leader Mark an important spot Flag an important date Find a Buddy when you need one Get you outdoors Leave a message Leave your mark Foster community collaboration Inspire collective effort Remove barriers Brainstorm Provide a safe space

What a bench requires: • Investment, price under $2K • Identify Placement • Businesses, community organizations and the City to help implement and maintain • People to use it!!!

Age-friendly cities and communities create supportive social and physical environments that enable older people to live active, safe, and meaningful lives.

Benches help. What do you think a BENCH in Guelph could do? Where should it go? If you are interested in providing input, support, investment or volunteering we would love to hear from you! Please contact Age Friendly Guelph, by phone 519-823-1291 ext. 2691, by email via agefriendly@guelph.ca or visit Guelph.ca/agefriendly to stay tuned for how you can get involved with the project!

Maureen Ellis, Artist Performance at Artful Aging; Rob O’Flanagan’s Visual Art. (photo by Ted Mahy, AFGLT member)

Guelph.ca/agefriendly

AGE FRIENDLY GUELPH • 4 page supplement (April 2017) • VENTURE GUELPH PUBLICATIONS LTD. ventureguelph.ca

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As Ted Mahy, Online Engagement Manager for Schlegel Villages, and Chair of the Age Friendly Guelph Leadership Team’s Communication and Information Working Group so boldly stated:

representing: older adults, businesses, ters exploring the domains of an volunteer organizations and agencies age-friendly community serving older adults, caregivers, and City of Guelph staff. Our members are com“I am inspired by the work and the mitted to collaboration, to the wellbeing creative ideas of the Age Friendly of older adults and to the health of the Guelph Leadership Team to provide community as a whole. the best for the seniors in our city and “Amazing things can making Guelph a great place to live happen when a group of Age Friendly Guelph Accomplishments and age,” says Mahy in reflection of our collective achievements to date. professionals who all have to-date • Joined the World Health Organization a focus on making the age-friendly communities (See the back-page of this pullout for lives of seniors better get • Worked with the University of Guelph, the OAS highlights to date) Institute for Community Engaged together to build a Scholarship to produce an Older Adult Volunteers and ambassadors are also Community Profile for Guelph (can be needed to support projects and share community and from specific expertise to sustain the Older found at Guelph.ca/agefriendly) that an age-friendly Adult Strategy.

• Worked with M&T and students from community.”

For more information or to apply to the Specialist High-Skills Major Program to create the AFG logo and be a part of Age Friendly Guelph, visit Guelph.ca/agefriendly, or email other marketing materials The Age Friendly Guelph Leadership volunteer@guelph.ca The City of • Circulated bi-monthly articles in Team (AFGLT) is responsible for the Guelph is an equal opportunity Business Venture stewardship of the Older Adult Strategy volunteer recruiter.

(OAS) Framework in Guelph. Its primary • Hosted close to 100 participants at Guelph’s first-ever Age Friendly responsibilities are to lead, uphold and Business Symposium advocate for the achievement of the vision and goal of the OAS. The leader- • Featured an Artful Aging Exhibition to Guelph.ca/agefriendly promote art, respect and social incluship team, working group members and sion; featuring local artists and presenvolunteer ambassadors are stakeholders

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Social Inclusion–Anonymous Artist, St. Georges Square, Guelph. (photo by Manon Germain, AFG Project Specialist)

Frank Valeriote and participants, Age Friendly Business Symposium. (photo by Ross Knechtel, webmaster, GWSA)

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AGE FRIENDLY GUELPH • 4 page supplement (April 2017) • VENTURE GUELPH PUBLICATIONS LTD. ventureguelph.ca

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OLDER ADULT STRATEGY: HIGHLIGHTS It’s projected that Guelph will have almost 53,000 adults aged 55 years and older by 2031*. That’s close to 23,000 more older adults than in 2011. The City of Guelph has developed an Older Adult Strategy using the World Health Organization age-friendly cities framework to make Guelph a great place to live and age well.

Stewarded by the Age Friendly Guelph Leadership Team, the Older Adult Strategy includes 64 recommendations and a 10-year action plan. Here are some highlights of what has been accomplished in the first 2 years.

2015

2017

2019

2021

2023

2025

Making Guelph buildings and outdoor spaces safe and accessible.

The City of Guelph uses Universal Design Principles that consider usability and respect the dignity of persons with disabilities when designing, renovating and constructing buildings.

Offering health and community services that fully support the wellbeing of older adults.

Guelph/Wellington Paramedic Services offers in-house Community Paramedic programming specific to identifying and supporting vulnerable individuals that are encountered in 911 responses through referrals to community services and programs.

Ensuring older adults have easy access to information about services and supports.

The City of Guelph website meets Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act standards.

Content can be read by screen readers and colours are chosen to aid those with visual disabilities.

Making housing available so older adults can choose where they live as they age.

The City of Guelph is close to finalizing an Affordable Housing Strategy which recommends that the zoning by-law review consider regulatory and other barriers that might discourage the creation of affordable housing.

Making Guelph’s transportation system age-friendly.

The standard for pedestrian crossing time at signalized locations is based upon a slower walking speed than most municipalities. Both audible and visual walk-don’t walk signals are installed at all new signalized locations.

Treating older adults with respect.

The Guelph-Wellington Gatekeeper Project received funding from the Government of Ontario to train community members to identify at-risk older adults and make a referral.

Volunteer with Age Friendly Guelph and help Guelph become a great place to live and age well. For information, visit guelph.ca/agefriendly

Guelph

* Greater Golden Horseshoe Growth Forecasts to 2104, Technical Report, November 2012

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AGE FRIENDLY GUELPH • 4 page supplement (April 2017) • VENTURE GUELPH PUBLICATIONS LTD. ventureguelph.ca