Beyond 50.05: A Report to the Nation on Livable Communities: Creating Environments for Successful Aging

by: Andrew Kochera, AARP Public Policy Institute, Audrey Straight, AARP Public Policy Institute, Thomas Guterbock, University of Virginia, from: Public Policy Institute, May 2005

This and Related Reports

On this page:

Beyond 50.05 Full Report
Beyond 50.05 Survey Report

As you grow older, will your community be livable for you? This report and our interactive quiz can help you decide. Regardless of whether we live in a city, a suburb, a small town, or out in the country, the question of livable communities is important for everyone. And it is particularly relevant for those people age 50 and older who are planning for (or have already entered) retirement, or who are facing challenges to independence and quality of life that often accompany aging. Yet is seldom discussed until it has become obvious that the community in which people live does not meet their needs.

This report, the fifth in AARP's Beyond 50, presents a new agenda for examining, building and retrofitting our communities to support successful aging. Specifically, it...

explores how people age 50 and older can continue to be independent and able to exercise choice and control in ways that are beneficial to and affordable for them and society
demonstrates the connections among community engagement, housing, transportation, and successful aging
highlights the consequences of community features that fail to account for the diversity of, and continual change in, residents ' needs
illustrates how persons age 50 and older contribute to, and benefit from, well-designed communities that promote community engagement

In addition to the lead authors listed above, other key contributors are: Neal Krause of the University of Michigan, Sheel Pandya and Ari Houser, both of PPI. (108 pages)

Grade Your Community

How well does your community meet your needs? Grade your community with this online assessment tool, and receive information on additional resources about making communities livable.

A Tool for Action: Livable Communities Evaluation Guide

Also, see AARP's related publication Livable Communities: An Evaluation Guide. This guide helps residents identify areas where they can direct their energies toward making their community more livable for themselves and for others.