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- Convenor:
-
Nanami Suzuki
(National Museum of Ethnology)
- Discussants:
-
Jason Danely
(Oxford Brookes University)
Erika Takahashi (Chiba University)
Ender Ricart (University of Chicago)
Mari Kagaya
- Location:
- 201 B
- Start time:
- 16 May, 2014 at
Time zone: Asia/Tokyo
- Session slots:
- 3
Short Abstract:
Based on the viewpoint of research on aging that the environment which meets older adults' diverse needs leads a vision of "age-friendly communities" where multi-generations live together, we examine the initiative for creating such environment, focusing on people's developing cultural resources.
Long Abstract:
As the design of an aging society in the 21st century, based on the viewpoint of research on aging that the environment which meets older adults' various hopes and needs leads to the concept of an "age-friendly community" in which diverse people live together, we examine elements indispensable to the community creation in which older adults live in peace and satisfaction.
Challenges of an aging society include those elements where older adults can select a place to live from various options, change the place easily when they need more help to realize their hopes, and use various resources and support networks to enrich their ever changing lives.
However, if we take notice of experiences of people who should either change their living place or move to survive, for example, in a disaster area losing the foundation of a life, or in depopulated villages in which the younger generation are expected to return to take care of the region, it is clear that both older adults and younger people should cooperate to create a community by discovering and sharing cultural resources toward producing a new culture.
The Presentations in this panel will consider the elements that constitute the environment where people of various cultural backgrounds can live satisfactorily together by examining people's ideas and practice to create a new culture by discovering and sharing cultural resources through interaction, rather than excluding or only trying to include newcomers to the existing culture by giving unilateral support.
Accepted papers:
Session 1Paper short abstract:
Engineering for Humanity is an intergenerational, interdisciplinary (anthropology and engineering) college program in the USA. This paper describes the program’s impacts on older adults and examines its lessons for designing and maintaining age-friendly communities.
Paper long abstract:
Engineering for Humanity is an intergenerational, interdisciplinary (anthropology and engineering) program at Olin College of Engineering, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is a partnership between students from Olin, Wellesley, and Babson Colleges and local Councils on Aging. Senior citizens who wish to age in place are recruited as "community partners" to work for a semester with students in a series of discovery, design, and community-building activities; ultimately the students design and deliver real, implemented solutions to the seniors' specific problems and challenges. This paper describes the program and, based on interview and survey data, impacts on older adults. The older adults receive a customized artifact to help them feel more independent. Beyond that, the class has non-material impacts on the older adults during and after the program. During the program, they report increased interest in getting out of their houses and engaging with others; they express feelings of being recognized and valued in society; and they positively cite the chance to have intergenerational peers. After the program, they say that they feel less lonely and less isolated. Even when living situations remained the same, participating seniors feel more comfortable reaching out to friends and family and discussing personal challenges. Some community partners go on to participate in more activities through local senior centers and in other venues. This paper includes discussion of the lessons we can take from this one course for how to design and maintain age-friendly communities, and why (and to whom) they are important.
Paper short abstract:
This paper examines the particular case of the depopulated and aging community which was stricken by the magnitude 7 earthquake in 2004. Analyzing the older adults' narratives, I will discuss the way in which they create various activities for pursuit of well-being to continue living in the community.
Paper long abstract:
The 2004 earthquake that struck the community located in a mountainous area hit by heavy snowfall as winter arrives, accelerated depopulation and aging, although it had been already faced gradual depopulation since the 1920s. All the local residents had no choice but to evacuate until its function was restored, owing to the earthquake that caused severe damage on the life foundation.
During the evacuation, survivors had to decide whether to return to their home community or move out from there. Quite a few young survivors chose to move out after the earthquake to search for convenience in commuting. On the other hand, many older survivors chose to return to their home community to restart their lives alone or with spouse. They are those who spent most of their lives in this community with family and retired from work or role as caregiver. Their decision might be made to rebuild a sense of belonging to the community and pursue well-being in accordance with their social capital and living condition.
In order to track how they decide whether to return or move out, I have conducted fieldwork for the last five years to examine which factor they considered the most important for pursuit of well-being in the daily life after disaster. On the basis of my research, this paper will explore the way in which older adults try to reconnect a relationship with neighborhood and recreate a sense of belonging to their community by various activities, as an example of "age-friendly community" that is in the process of recovery.
Paper short abstract:
In this paper, I examine islanders’ sense of comfort by focusing on how they are managing such challenges as population graying, depopulation, and governmental reforms in island communities in Nagasaki, Japan.
Paper long abstract:
In this paper, I examine islanders' sense of comfort by focusing on how they are managing such challenges as population graying, depopulation, and governmental reforms in island communities in Nagasaki, Japan. The residents of Ojika Township in Nagasaki have been working on island community-making (shimazukuri) even as the islands have been facing multiple social challenges. Ojika is located at the north end of Nagasaki's Goto Archipelago and consists of 17 islands. The total population as of November 2013 is approximately 2800, 44% of whom are elderly.
In 2007 and 2008, the People to People American high school student ambassadors consecutively chose Ojika as the best place out of 48 places they visited around the world. How did Ojika achieve this? For centuries, Ojika was called the islands of hospitality, and the islanders positively transformed their geographic disadvantage. How do they continue to do this? By analyzing their strategy, I examine Ojika islanders' sense of comfort.
Paper short abstract:
In my speech I will try to point out the similarities and differences between Poland and Japan and indicate the model of co-existence of many generations in post-modern society and show which cultural institutions create a new reality in an aging society.
Paper long abstract:
Twenty-first century brings new challenges to the post-industrial societies. Until now, through creating the image of the nuclear family with a relatively small number of children, as a self-sufficient unit of production has led to a significant aging of the population, and in the near future, exacerbating the problem. From the cultural point of view, the transformation of the past fifty years have led to the breaking of traditional models of social ties and thus to changes in the ways of transfer of cultural norms that existed between the generations. It has also led to changes in social roles, as in the new circumstances disappeared the role of grandparents as a carrier of knowledge about traditional culture.
Accordingly, the following questions arise: (1) how the modern post-industrial society organize themselves to ensure the elderly decent living conditions; (2) how the elderly find themselves in the new socio-cultural reality; (3) which cultural institutions took over the tasks traditionally assigned to the extended family relating to the needs of the elderly.
In my analysis I will try to answer these questions through a comparative study of the situation elderly in two different countries - Poland and Japan.
I will try to point out the similarities and differences and indicate the model of co-existence of many generations in post-modern society and show which cultural institutions create a new reality in an aging society.
Paper short abstract:
GS brings a new development model between socialization and traditional family elder service. It features with functions of day-care for elders and night-post for volunteers, which constructs circulation of "I serve for others' parents and others for my parents" and realization of elder service for free.
Paper long abstract:
Background: The aging in China is deteriorating with TER of 1.2 under policy of"one child"and"later-marriage and later-childbearing".Now elders'population is more than 0.2 billion and is expected to exceed one-third of total population in 2033.Unattended elders are left in hometown and their children work far away. The situation is challenging Chinese traditional elder-care model which all family members were living together and elders were cared by their children.
Proposed countermeasures:
①Establishmenting GSs in communities to provide service to elders.Meanwhile,GSs can serve as night-posts for volunteers and some elders.
②Establishmenting volunteer service mechanism and feedback system in GSs to provide services for volunteers and their parents/grandparents.
③Establishing"Ginkgo Hand-in-hand Card"(GC)system to bind volunteers and their parents/grandparents,which could be managed nationwide.
Feasibility: The existing public service carriers could be reconstructed in short time with low cost by governments supplemented by companies.
①relying on Community-Health-Service-Center and other public facilities.
②relying on nationwide social-security-card with additional function to Community-Health-Service-Center for remote access.
③boosting tourism with public welfare of Hand-in-hand Travel and cheap safe travel of night-posts.
Significance: "Ginkgo" is a holy tree worshiped for human life in ancient time to represent endless vitality. GSs can harmonize families and society.The model of"I serve for others' parents and others for my parents"could meet needs of empty-nest elders and society to benefit all people.It can keep sustainable development strategy of elder-care for it would be a non-financial solution and a model to motivate nationwide participation in social eld-care service.
Paper short abstract:
Access to meals becomes difficult as health and mobility decline, especially for the elderly living alone. Based on field research conducted in America and Japan, this paper examines various innovative methods by which meal provision can create age-friendly communities.
Paper long abstract:
Access to meals becomes difficult as health and mobility decline, especially for the elderly living alone. In America and Japan, senior centers and their programs in local communities play important roles in engaging the elderly in various activities after they retire. The congregate meal program, one of the most important services provided to the elderly in American senior centers, ensures that the elderly have a nutritionally balanced meal at least once a day. It also helps them maintain independent lives and provides opportunities to socialize with other elderly people. The program also offers meal delivery services for the homebound elderly.
Japanese senior centers do not offer regular meal services or home delivery services. However, those who attend such centers often bring snacks, lunches, or sweets to share among themselves. In this way, food facilitates their communication and socialization. One approach to ensure that the elderly, even if not all, have access to food and socialization is through senior centers. However, difficulties in shopping and acquiring daily food remain serious problems for elderly people living in depopulated villages with limited public transportation. Also, many elderly people suffer from chronic illnesses that impose dietary restrictions, which may make meals less enjoyable.
This paper examines various innovative methods to help the elderly gain access to meals that are nutritious as well as appetizing and to build new social networks. It is shown that meals are an important vehicle to create age-friendly communities.
Paper short abstract:
This presentation considers valid cultural resources and the issues involved in creating an age-friendly community, based on the ethnographic fieldwork as well as interviews and discussion with care workers of an elderly care institution that experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011.
Paper long abstract:
In Natori, Miyagi Prefecture that suffered the devastating tsunami in the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011, an elderly care institution in the private sector that was designated as an emergency shelter, has since developed activities to meet the needs of older adults.
This presentation examines the challenges of finding and developing cultural resources toward creating a new community based on the experiences of care workers who have engaged in support activities.
The institution has offered "home help" for the aged which is a visiting service to each home, and day care activities performed with an institution. The care workers have made nutritious meals with which older adults are pleased, and tried to solve their problems and worries.
Multi-generational and cross-cultural exchange essential when caring for the elderly who have experienced a radical change of life, such as being forced to move, has resulted in the wisdom of new community formation and healing experiences obtained by expressing a common experience.
On the other hand, care workers have experienced difficulties in balancing the taking care of others and themselves when they themselves are in need of adequate support and rest, and at risk of suffering PTSD.
We consider the challenges involved in the creation of an age-friendly community, such as cooperation of older adults to participate in activities with the younger generation who have greater flexibility in lifestyles, as well as the path of cooperation between the public and private sectors.
Paper short abstract:
In this presentation, I will elucidate how elderly Koreans define and encounter death by examining current debates on end-of-life treatment and the nationwide “well-dying” movement.
Paper long abstract:
As of September 2013, 12.2% of the South Korean population was over 65 years old, qualifying the country as an aging society. By the year 2027, Statistics Korea estimates that this figure will reach 21% making the country a super-aging society. As the aging population increases, the elderly became more interested in how to prepare for death. On May 21, 2009, the South Korean Supreme Court approved, for the first time, the cessation of treatment for a brain-damaged elderly woman on life support. Since then, the so-called "Grandma Kim" case has triggered nationwide interest in the well-dying movement, which includes advanced medical and funeral directives, care and instruction from "well-dying" directors, and commercial acts toward the public.
This presentation examines how the elderly define and encounter death by investigating the well-dying movement in South Korea. In particular, this analysis investigates how Korea's aging population views the movement and elucidates its benefits based on recent discussions of the end-of-life treatment in Korean society.
Paper short abstract:
This study examines the qualities and depositions necessary to navigate this globalizing world, and to channel these characteristics into the global age-friendly world, based on the case study of three internship programs of Osaka University organized in Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand in 2013.
Paper long abstract:
Internship has long been regarded as a training platform that provides young students with opportunities to work for a limited time and achieve a certain level of self-awareness before going out into the "real world." Although most internships have been held domestically, overseas programs are still rare to be held. However, with the accelerated pace of globalization, universities in Japan have started turning new eyes toward overseas internship, developing them not only as means of offering probationary working experience but also as educational programs to nurture global future leaders who could cope with this changing world, in which people live with others from various origins.
Meanwhile, with Japan's declining birthrate and rapidly aging society, Japanese companies are encouraged to employ older adults as temporary workers and/or extend the mandatory retirement age. This trend is often translated into a competition for employment between the young and older adults.
This study examines the overseas internship program of Osaka University that was newly introduced in 2013 in Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand. The paper discusses how our "coupling" internship program, in which our students are partnered with local students, with students majoring in different areas, and are mentored by older adults, would work as an educational program in terms of creating global leaders, age-friendly working settings, as well as age-respected relationships between and across various generations.