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Breakout Sessions: Wednesday, November 14

2018 AARP Livable Communities National Conference, Charlotte, North Carolina


spinner image A red pin marks Charlotte, North Carolina, site of the 2018 AARP Livable Communities National Conference
Illustration by 123rf

Sessions are listed in alphabetical order. 

1. Attitudes, Insights and Mindsets: Results From Recent Livable Communities Research

Research is key to building communities that support older residents and promote their quality of life, independence, wellness and active participation in the community. Human-centered design work from Project Catalyst and IDEO provides insights about four mindsets representing older adults at risk of isolation. Key points to be covered are:

  1. How marketing to seniors goes unanswered
  2. How decline is more terrifying than death
  3. How healthy aging is grounded in skillful improvisation
  4. How technology and professional caregivers are for operational tasks, while loved ones are for emotional ones

New research from the 2018 AARP Home and Community Preferences Survey (a national survey of adults age 18 or older, including multicultural samples among African-Americans, Hispanic-Latino/as and LGBT) provides useful insights about the wants and needs of adults as they age.  These insights can help communities become places that can positively influence residents’ overall health and well-being and keep them actively engaged and involved in their community. [CM 1.0]

  • Joanne Binette, Senior Research Advisor, AARP
  • Teresa Keenan, Research Director, AARP

2. Creating a New Livable Neighborhood: Engaging New Partners, Influencers and the Public

As communities grow, neighborhoods are being developed in environmentally impacted areas. New partnerships, engagement strategies and conversations must be initiated and sustained with many stakeholders. Hear from the team that’s developing Gray’s Station, a 75-acre downtown neighborhood in Des Moines, Iowa. Learn how this livable and age-friendly neighborhood came to be designed for all ages. See how the mixed-use design encourages mobility by incorporating greenways, walking trails, cycle tracks and a walking bridge connection to an adjacent 167-acre city park and 100-acre lake. The development is also sensitive to environmental needs through a transformation of wet and dry storm water basins into a wetland park system. To engage residents, the team used the community-listening strategies featured in Book 2 of the AARP Roadmap to Livability series. [CM 1.0]

  • Kris Saddoris, Vice President, Development Hubbell Realty Company
  • Joe Pietruszynski, Vice President, Land Development Hubbell Realty Company
  • Laura Kessel, Planner, RDG Planning and Design
  • Connie Eastman, Associate State Director, AARP Iowa

3. Engaging Communities: Hands-On Design Collaboration with Mixopoly

This session provides a how-to for designing in physical form neighborhoods that are  mixed-density, sustainable, supportive, age-friendly and safe. Mixopoly is an evolution of successful historical models, and its neighborhood design patterns incorporate an assortment of housing types as well as parks and open spaces. With Mixopoly, housing ranges from economical rentals to high-value owner-occupied homes, providing a broad choice of price points that are both market-rate and affordable. When incorporated into a block, a true mix of occupant incomes is present. From a regional perspective, Mixopoly provides a full range of mixed-density, from rural to urban conditions, forming a sustainable region of city neighborhoods, towns, villages and rural hamlets. [CM 1.0]

  • Tom Low, Director, Civic By Design

4. Financing Livable Communities by Ballot: Opportunities and Challenges

State and local governments are using ballot measures to raise taxes or issue bonds for financing livability-related community projects. But public support for these measures is not always a given, particularly when the project is complex and the opposition is mobilized. This session will offer insights for gauging when the time is right to support a ballot measure, to successfully manage working with a broad-based coalition, and to realistically evaluate and counter opposition. Case studies, research results and direct action organizing techniques will be discussed. [CM 1.0]

  • Barrie Tabin Berger, Senior Legislative Representative, AARP
  • Steve Carter, Senior Advisor, AARP,  Rebecca Kelly, State Director, AARP Tennessee
  • Mandla Moyo, Associate State Director, AARP Indiana
  • Tim Summers, State Director, AARP Montana

5. Less Is More: The Village Network Comes to North Carolina

Traditional care models cannot fully meet the needs of older adults. This session, moderated by the Village to Village Network, shares information in three tracks: key characteristics of a village, success stories, and the opportunity for each village to be unique. Attendees will learn about the Charlotte Village Network, which began as a group exploring aging solutions in the LGBT community and has grown to serve much of Charlotte, with a current focus on ethnic diversity. The discussion will also address the value of including nursing services in this work and the need for older adult services in a North Carolina college town. [CM 1.0]

  • Barbara Hughes Sullivan, Executive Director, Village to Village Network
  • Mandy Summerson, President, Village to Village Network
  • Jim Kimbler, Immediate Past President, Charlotte Village Network
  • Karen Metzguer, Executive Director, Fearrington Cares
  • Mary Anne Hammond, President, Davidson Village Network

6. Rural Communities: Engaging People, Partners and Policymakers 

Age-friendly communities share many traits, but urban and rural environments require different approaches. The residents of rural communities tend to be older than people in urban areas and they have fewer financial resources, higher poverty rates and longer travel distances. Consequently, it’s imperative for rural communities to leverage community assets and engage various groups to meet the needs of an aging population. Regional approaches help alleviate some of these challenges by pooling resources and bringing people together. This session is geared toward regional approaches to rural, age-friendly work. A successful age-friendly campaign involves buy-in from residents, local businesses, community organizations and elected leaders. Panelists from rural communities will share how they are effectively engaging residents, building partnerships and advocating for age-friendly communities. [CM 1.0]

  • George Man, Age-Friendly Carbon County VISTA, Red Lodge Area Community Foundation
  • Therese Picasso-Edwards, Resilient Community Program Director, Red Lodge Area Community Foundation
  • Nancy Davis, Vice Chair, Communications, Age-Friendly Community Initiative
  • Anne Schroth, Healthy Aging Program Coordinator Healthy Peninsula Carolina
  • Patricia Oh, Age-Friendly Communities Consultant, AARP

7. Statewide Initiatives to Create Communities for All

The Department of Elder Affairs (DOEA) is Florida’s state unit on aging, and its mission is to keep older Floridians healthy, safe and independent. In partnership with 11 Area Agencies on Aging, 16 memory disorder clinics and AARP, two statewide Initiatives were created to build livable communities for all: Communities for a Lifetime (CFAL) and Dementia Care and Cure Initiative (DCCI). The Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative is a broad-based coalition of more than 100 organizations supporting and leading a range of efforts to advance inclusive Age- and Dementia-Friendly Community efforts as well as an Age-Friendly State designation. Learn about and discuss the partnerships created and steps taken to build diverse, engaging and accessible communities for all. [CM 1.0]

  • Laura Cantwell, Associate State Director, AARP Florida
  • Linda Schotthoefer, Senior Director of Community Initiatives, United Way of Miami-Dade
  • James Fuccione, Senior Director, Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative

8. The Future of Transportation: Universal Mobility as a Service

Emerging technologies present an unprecedented opportunity to vastly expand mobility for the nation’s 100 million non-drivers. While driverless cars have received the most media attention, the impending disruption is much larger and could involve a shift in the entire ecosystem of transportation, from personally owning vehicles to accessing transportation from a menu of options. Jana Lynott of the AARP Public Policy Institute offers a vision for a future centered around a concept she calls “Universal Mobility as a Service,” where everyone in the community is served, regardless of age, disability, race/ethnicity, income or geographic location. A discussion among attendees, panelists and the moderator will explore tools for “Universal MaaS” implementation and the roles local stakeolders can play to make this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity a reality. [CM 1.0]

  • Jana Lynott, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor, AARP Public Policy Institute
  • Roger Teal, President, DemandTrans Solutions, Inc.
  • Kevin Chambers, Founder and Principal, Full Path Transit Technology

2018 AARP Livable Communities National Conference 

Main conference page: AARP.org/Livable2018

Our prior conferences: 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013

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