Delighted to have been invited to speak at Ageing Better Headquarters about our Policy Report, Shifting How We View the Ageing Process. The Report summarises findings from the one-day workshop that explored the value, feasibility and acceptability of shifting how we view the ageing process. The Report’s goal is to achieve attitudinal change to ageing, by moving away from a narrative of disease and decline towards the idea that ageing is a lifelong process of change.
Category Archives: policy
Shifting How We View the Ageing Process
As part of The Sciences of Ageing and the Culture of Youth, we had run a Policy Lab together with the Policy Institute at King’s in Autumn 2022. The one-day workshop had brought together academic researchers from a range of disciplines, practicing clinicians, people with lived experience and representatives from the care sector, charities and the policy world to explore how valuable, feasible and acceptable it would be to shift how we view the ageing process. Read the full Policy Report here.
Making Ageing and Dementia Studies Matter outside the Academy
At the 8th Arts and Humanities Research Council Fellows Conference, one of the panels focused on ‘Developing careers in the arts and humanities’. I contributed with a presentation that explored tensions between research, and impact and engagement activities, based on my experiences of currently running a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship funded research programme on ageing, The Sciences of Ageing and the Culture of Youth.
Older Adults’ Perspectives, Experiences and Expectations of Ageing in England
Here’s the grounded theory study protocol of the ongoing sociological investigation that is part of the SAACY research programme. Our study invites adults aged 50-80 years old with different backgrounds and experiences to take part in interviews and focus groups to explore and discuss what ageing means to them. ‘Older adults’ perspectives, experiences, and expectations of ageing in England: A grounded theory study protocol’ is published in the open access journal Social Science Protocols, hosted by Edinburgh Diamond.
SAACY Lifelong Ageing conference 17th May 2023
A rewarding day of conversations across sectors and disciplines about ageing as a lifelong process. Thanks to Camille Aubry for this illustration of a productive SAACY conference at Science Gallery London.
Books Beyond Words book launch
A pleasure to attend the Books Beyond Words book launch held by Baroness Hollins at the House of Lords. Books Beyond Words are picture stories that help people with learning disabilities explore feelings and experiences. Look out for the charity’s BBC Radio 4 Appeal on Easter Sunday.
‘Exhausting, frustrating and lonely’
In July this year, the Founder Trustee of the Pam Britton Trust for Dementia in Warwickshire, Tony Britton, and I had a joint paper published in the journal Dementia: the international journal of social research and practice. Here’s the press release about the paper.
The Sciences of Ageing and the Culture of Youth
In a guest post for the Science and Policy Blog of the Cambridge Centre for Science and Policy I reflect on diverging perspectives on ageing, motivations behind SAACY and recent work with third sector project partners.
Informal Dementia Care
An analysis produced by the Founder Trustee of the Pam Britton Trust for Dementia in Warwickshire and myself of the informal dementia care situation in England and beyond. Published in Dementia: the international journal of social research and practice, the piece critically reflects on contemporary policy issues related to dementia care and proposes actions for change. Thanks to funding from UK Research and Innovation this paper is available open access.
Informal Dementia Care: COVID-19, burning glass on the divide between policy and practice
An intervention in the framework of Thinking in Crisis Times, a collective exploration by the KCL English Department, to situate the ongoing care crisis within the wider context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Martina Zimmermann 