Dec 09 What if we took action now on population aging? Part 1
This episode focuses on the challenges and opportunities presented by the changing demographics of aging. Dr. Jim Johnson, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School Distinguished Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship and Director of Urban Investment Strategy Center, explores the topic with Cooper and Nicole. In rural counties the issue becomes how do we think about rebuilding those communities in such a way so that older adults can live out their lives with dignity with world class healthcare?
You can get lulled to sleep if you live in major metropolitan areas that have amazing access to healthcare but if you look outside these geographic areas, you are faced with the exodus of young people. Aging in rural America is an opportunity not a problem. Rural communities represent an opportunity for innovation, business development, and job creation. How we leverage technology in such a way to allow people to live independently? How can we turn churches to age friendly locations? Research tells us that isolation and loneliness is equivalent of smoking 14 cigarettes a day.
How do we build age friendly communities? Everything in a community has to change to benefit the aging population. How do we switch from a social problem to a social opportunity? We need to think of it as a “reverse pitch” to emerging entrepreneurs. We must recognize that 10 million millennials have eldercare responsibilities. There are a number of health related crises today that have put millennials in this position sooner than other generations.
This and more covered in this episode.
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