Providing logistical and financial resources for older adults in Niagara to volunteer will expand their social networks and sense of well-being, according to new Brock University research.

These supports could include cash rewards, transportation and improved internet access, says the Niagara Community Observatory’s latest policy brief, “Change in an Evolving Niagara: Navigating the Age-Friendly Communities Movement and Volunteerism.”

Co-written by fourth-year Health Sciences student Aliya Aragon and Associate Professor of Health Sciences Miya Narushima, the brief brings together key findings from local, national and international documents produced by groups such as Niagara Connects and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The brief explores the formation and continuing work of the local age-friendly movement against a backdrop of demographic and post-pandemic changes in the region and makes recommendations on making Niagara a more age-friendly community.

In it, Narushima and Aragon note a significant increase in Niagara’s older adult population, defined as being 55 years of age and above, and identify volunteerism is an effective way of combating ageism and growing isolation among older adults following the pandemic.

While the number of older adults is growing, fewer of them are volunteering according to the brief.

“People getting into retirement, and those who are active in their 70s and even 80s, are valuable resources who have much to offer to the community, yet they face barriers to volunteering,” says Narushima.

To increase older adult volunteerism, the brief recommends setting up:

• A central location where older adults can find and access volunteer opportunities that match their interests, skills, schedules, and mental and physical capacities.
• A centre that contracts out retirees’ services on a part-time, flexible basis. The centre would charge employers for the work retired employees provide so that the centre’s members can be compensated for their work.
• Supports for transportation, internet access and other logistics, particularly for older adults from equity-deserving groups.
• A system of grants and funds that go toward rewarding volunteers.

“Volunteering is not just altruistic,” says Aragon. “It also provides a social safety net and benefits to the economy, things that will help Niagara continue to grow and develop.”

Social isolation was just one of seven concerns older adults expressed in a 2023 study led by Narushima and the 2022 Empowering Older Adults in Niagara Survey produced by the Age-friendly Niagara Council (AFNC).

The other concerns include housing options, transportation, access to information, internet access and digital divide, accessibility to public and outdoor spaces, quality of long-term care, and poverty and employment issues.

Aragon says that, on top of all of these, an increasing number of older adults are dealing with racism, xenophobia and other forms of discrimination as Niagara becomes more ethnically and racially diverse.

To strengthen the local age-friendly movement and improve the lives of older adults in Niagara, the brief also includes recommendations that organizations, businesses and municipal governments:

• Provide financial and administrative support for priorities and plans.
• Prioritize inclusive and equitable initiatives to meet the needs of both younger and older citizens in diverse communities.
• Consider the needs of older adults and other equity-deserving groups in community development.
• Support programs, services and facilities that bring young and older people together.

The research is funded in part by a grant from Brock University’s Match of Minds student research employment program.