Age-Friendly Sarasota: A Community for All Ages

Posted on

Mar 02, 2016

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Sarasota County is part of a network of more than 280 cities and communities worldwide promoting greater health and well-being for people of all ages through Age-Friendly Sarasota, an initiative to engage government, businesses, organizations and residents to build a lifelong community.



The age-friendly designation, which was presented by the World Health Organization (WHO) and AARP, makes Sarasota County one of more than 70 communities across the United States and the first in Florida in the global network.

Age-friendly cities and communities strive to promote active, happy and healthy lifestyles for people of all ages through interconnected Domains of Livability outlined by WHO.

These domains include:

Civic participation and employment
Communication and information

Community support and health services
Housing
Outdoor spaces and buildings
Respect and social inclusion
Social participation
Transportation

The WHO Global Network of Age-friendly Cities and Communities launched in 2006 and has grown to include cities and communities from more than 30 countries around the world, serving more than 113 million people. Other age-friendly communities have successfully researched, designated and implemented intergenerational approaches to make life better for their residents, including enhancements like additional seating for older riders on public transit, housing for older residents located in close proximity to services and amenities, using younger residents to provide technology training sessions for seniors, and training for family caregivers.

Age-Friendly Sarasota is supported by The Patterson Foundation, a fully endowed charitable foundation, which facilitates a unique partnership between AARP Florida, the Florida Department of Elder Affairs, the Florida Policy Exchange Center on Aging at the University of South Florida, Sarasota County Government, and the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee. Dr. Kathy Black, a gerontologist and professor at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee, is serving as The Patterson Foundations initiative consultant.

Editors Note: Visit agefriendlysarasota.org to learn more about the initiative. Follow Age-Friendly Sarasota on Facebook and Twitter.

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