+++ The European Silver Economy Newsletter, Issue 1/2006, January 2006 ++ Issue 1/2006 Contents. Section One: Editorial. Section Two: Reports from the SEN@ER Regions. 01: Joint Workshop of the "Institut Arbeit und Technik" and the Bertelsmann Foundation on Demographic Change and its Influence on Independent Living. 02: Technological Literacy of Older People in Extremadura. 03: Provincie Gelderland: Dejuvenation and Ageing Programme. 04: Rich in Experience and Years - Issues of Ageing for the West Midland Region in the UK. 05: eHealth 2006 - e-Health in the Europe of the Regions: Networks for Health; High Level Conference in Malaga, Spain, May 10-12, 2006 organised by the SEN@ER partner Junta de Andalucia. 06: Marketing for the Generation 50+ - a Manual from North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. 07: Handicraft and trade in North Rhine-Westphalia have formulated objectives and action points to strengthen the European handicraft sector in the context of the Silver Economy and invites other European regions to cooperate in the development of concrete approaches and projects. 08: The Demographic Challenge - Expert Opinions from North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. 09: Culture for the Generation 55plus - The Project "MehrKultur 55plus" in North Rhine-Westphalia / Germany. 10: Response options for retail and wholesale organisations in an ageing society - a Study from North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. Section Three: Reports from the SEN@ER Network and the European SEN@ER Secretariat. 11: SEN@ER SIG "Financial Services" event in Brussels on 8 - 9 March 2006. 12: Successful meeting of SEN@ER SIG "Culture" on 25 November 2005, the second one to follow on 31 March 2006. 13: SEN@ER contribution to the consultation on "Cohesion Policy in Support of Growth and Jobs: Community Strategic Guidelines, 2007-2013". 14: European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing meetings attended by the European SEN@ER Secretariat. 15: SEN@ER leaflet in English and German now available. 16: SEN@ER at workshops: "Towards Inclusive Online Provision of Public Services in European Cities and Regions" and "The contribution of ICT to active ageing in work and employment". Section Four: European Commission. 17: IST call for proposals including the topic of "ambient assisted living in the ageing society" with submission deadline 25 April 2006. 18: Information Technology - Commission Seeks Consensus on Improving Accessibility. 19: i2010 workshop on "Digital inclusion and participation" on 23 September 2005 in Brussels, Belgium. Section Five: Cooperation With the European Union, the European Parliament and Further European Stakeholders. 20: SEN@ER contributed to two Commission consultation processes. 21: The European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing. 22: Meeting of the European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing on "The impact of Ageing on the future of cohesion and research policies in the EU", held on the 3 May 2005. 23: Meeting of the European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing on the "Employment of Older Workers: examples of good practice", held on the 20 September 2005. Section Six: Conferences and Projects. 24: 2nd European Silver Economy Conference 2006 in Maastricht. 25: Times of Societal Change - Active Ageing - Develop Joint Perspectives in the Euregio. 26: Healthy Ageing in Europe - an international symposium to take place from 8 - 9 March 2006 in the House of Industry in Vienna, Austria. 27: eHealth 2006 - e-Health in the Europe of the Regions: Networks for Health; High Level Conference in Malaga, Spain, May 10-12, 2006. 28: AGE - The European Older People' Platform: International Conference on Ageing, Disability and Independence (ICADI) 2006. 29: The International Federation on Ageing (IFA): 8. Global Conference Global ageing - the North-South Challenge. 30: User-orientation in Online Public Services in eHealth, eLearning and eGovernment: First results from an EC-funded project. [Contents ends]. ++ Section One: Editorial. In any political debate, demographic change and ageing are commonly regarded as a threat. What is required, however, is a shift in both, focus and approach: We need to consider demographic change and the ageing of our society as a challenge and as an opportunity for both, economic growth and improving Europe's competitiveness. In the "Silver Economy Network of European Regions", we emphasise the economic opportunities inherent in this demographic change. Today, senior citizens across Europe enjoy a far greater choice when spending their money on products and services. At the European level we should consider the achievements of the different societies - in terms of culture and in economic fields of action when considering ways to improve the qualities ranging from services, tourism, culture, wellness, and health to products and services which help support independent living. As European politicians, decision makers in organisations as well as senior citizens themselves more strongly embrace this perspective, new powerful markets for products, services, economic co-operatives and networks will emerge from which all European regions can economically benefit. At Silver Economy Network of European Regions (SEN@ER), we expect the development and implementation of the "Silver Economy" to have a positive impact on economic growth and job creation in Europe. We are convinced that senior citizens will add a major impetus to significant parts of the economy. For North Rhine-Westfalia - Germany's largest state with a population of roughly 18 million - where the state government initiated a "Silver economy" initiative, recent calculations have shown that a proactive response to the needs and interests of the elderly could lead to some 100.000 new jobs. Similar calculations for Germany as a whole predict more than 900.000 new jobs in the "Silver Economy" within the next two decades. There are no other sectors or businesses with a higher growth potential. These calculations should be comparable to other regions and countries in Europe. The European Unions needs a European "Silver Economy" initiative to further improve the quality of life for older citizens and to reap the benefits of the demographic change in terms of economic growth, jobs, employment and competitiveness. This initiative should be developed by the Commission and eventually implemented at all regional levels. The "Silver Economy Network of European Regions" has been developed by North Rhine-Westfalia along with Andalucia (ES), Burgenland (AT), Extremadura (ES), Gelderland (NL), Limburg (NL), Lower Silesia (PL), Mid-East Region Ireland (IE), Midland Region Ireland (IE), Scotland (UK) and West-Midlands (UK). The network is alive! This newsletter demonstrates that we are actively developing concepts to further implement relevant projects and activities. We are confident that the European Parliament, the European Commission and the European Council will support us and look forward to a multitude of European activity also at the political level. Enjoy reading! Armin Laschet North Rhine-Westfalia Minister for the Generations, Family, Women and Integration [Section One ends]. ++ Section Two: Reports from the SEN@ER Regions. +01: Joint Workshop of the "Institut Arbeit und Technik" and the Bertelsmann Foundation on Demographic Change and its Influence on Independent Living. A joint Workshop of the "Institut Arbeit und Technik" and the Bertelsmann Foundation on demographic change and its influence on independent Living took place in Gelsenkirchen (Germany) from 8 - 9 September 2005 with about 200 participants. The workshop focused on four topics: - Living space adaptation and housing industry - Housing and living related services - Intelligent living and smart home technology - Neighbourhood design The workshop's key results were: - The housing industry as well as social and health service providers have a large interest in concepts for independent living for older people. - In many cities and regions there are new projects and initiatives which could mutually help each other and learn from the other's experience. - In pilot projects, e.g. in the field of tele-health-monitoring, many positive experiences have been made. It will be one major task in the near future, to bring these experiences to a broader audience and let others benefit from them. - Many participants asked the organisers to expand the exchange on best practice examples in this field in the future. +02: Technological Literacy of Older People in Extremadura. The Autonomous Community of Extremadura is one of the Spanish regions with the highest proportion of elderly people who account for 18.8% of the population. Integration into the Information Society will not be achieved without prior technological literacy. But in the case of the elderly we are faced with the situation that their real capacity to access and effectively use the new tools differs so vastly from that of other groups in society that it has become one of the facets of the so-called digital divide. The process of technological integration of Extremadura's elderly population is being carried out through programs of technological literacy connected to the leisure time use of the Internet in specific venues. These include Old People's Day Centres, and venues specially created for the purpose - known as 'New Knowledge Centres' (NKC). The latter are sponsored by the Junta of Extremadura (the regional government) and administered by the Regional Federation of People's Universities, a private non-profit institution co-financed by the town councils and the Junta of Extremadura. More information is available from this website: http://www.nccextremadura.org/ . +03: Provincie Gelderland: Dejuvenation and Ageing Programme. A quick, creative response to the phenomena of dejuvenation and ageing now facing our society - that is the aim of the province's Dejuvenation and Ageing Programme. The programme is designed to provide local authorities, housing associations and care and welfare providers with provincial government support for projects that combine housing, welfare and care. The aim is to improve the quality of life for an older population in Gelderland. In June this year 45 projects were selected for which more than 6 million euros will be spend. The projects involve the development of plans and implementations which are aimed at providing attractive residential areas for the elderly and others in need of care and ICT projects that will enable people to live independently for longer period of time. Budgets have also been allocated to innovation and knowledge development projects in the field of housing, welfare and care. You can read more about the programme and the projects at http://www.gelderland.nl/vergrijzing/ . Further information is available from the programme secretariat, Phone +31 (0) 26 359 9312, e-mail: mailto:vergrijzing@prv.gelderland.nl . +04: Rich in Experience and Years - Issues of Ageing for the West Midland Region in the UK. The report 'Rich in Experience and Years: Issues of Ageing for the West Midlands' was produced at the end of 2004 to document the work of the West Midlands Advisory Group on Ageing. This group is a network of voluntary and community sector organisations interested in addressing the issues surrounding Active Ageing. The Network looked at 5 key themes: Learning and Employment, Transport, Housing, Social Cohesion/ Crime, and Health and Social Care. Within the report these themes were investigated, alongside the financial status of the older population. It assessed the situation in the West Midlands region and concluded with a series of recommendations for changes in society, which would promote a better quality of life for elderly citizens. The report can be downloaded from here: http://www.wmra.gov.uk/documents/Age_report_final_version.pdf . +05: eHealth 2006 - e-Health in the Europe of the Regions: Networks for Health; High Level Conference in Malaga, Spain, May 10-12, 2006 organised by the SEN@ER partner Junta de Andalucia The Junta de Andalucia - one of the SEN@ER partners - together with the Austrian EU-Presidency and the European Commission is organising the eHealth 2006 High Level Conference in Malaga with the objective of analysing the role of the European Regions in the eHealth strategies. The website is available at: http://www.ehealthconference2006.org/ or contact mailto:info@ehealthconference2006.org . +06: Marketing for the Generation 50+ - a Manual from North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The demographic change poses a major challenge for retail trade: according to a forecast from the German National Institute for Statistics, people aged 50 to 60 years will become the largest group in German population over the next 15 years (with about 20 million people). Not only will those people be the only growing group of customers in German population, but they will also have considerable purchasing power. How can retail trade tap that potential? A manual on Marketing for the Generation 50+, published by the chamber of industry and commerce in Dortmund/Germany (Industrie- und Handelskammer Dortmund), sets out to help answering that question. It contains useful tips and practical guidance for retail trade companies on the successful use of marketing instruments aiming at elder customers. For example, shop layouts should provide for rest areas and the alleys and doors should be accessible, containing no turnstiles. The manual points out that the elderly are no uniform group of customers but differ widely, as do their purchasing patterns, by age, experience and life style. Accordingly, the manual helps to tackle that challenge and to make use of possible opportunities. The manual "Marketing for the Generation 50+" (in German) can be downloaded from here: http://www.dortmund.ihk24.de/DOIHK24/DOIHK24/servicemarken/branchen/handel/anlagen/2005-07-11_Leitfaden_Gen50plus.pdf . +07: Handicraft and trade in North Rhine-Westphalia have formulated objectives and action points to strengthen the European handicraft sector in the context of the Silver Economy and invites other European regions to cooperate in the development of concrete approaches and projects The objectives and action points have been agreed on recently and include the following actions over the next years. 2006 - 2007: Information gathering, comparison of market structures, comparison of technical requirements and norms/standards, Europe-wide stock-taking of existing approaches: - Information gathering on market structures differentiated according to sectors and their degree of specialisation and spectrum of experiences - Information gathering on the region and country-specific service offerings for the domain "services for seniors" and the existing building trades and industry (new building development and adaptations) - Comparison of technical building standards with respect to senior specific construction and building - Information gathering on social health security systems which may create and impact specific demand - Information gathering on commercial and non-commercial actors in the field of seniors - Information gathering on region specific and nationwide networks of relevance Framework conditions - Development of a framework for a knowledge base (expert network, structures, technology, media, updates) - Development and implementation of demand-oriented knowledge bases 2006 - 2009: Motivation for and development of a network of industry associations and organisations - Contact establishment - Preparation of strategic partnerships for the development of new markets - Workshops (consulting on how to network service providers and structures and to establish - Development of models and approaches for joint action areas - European exchange of experiences, knowledge transfer 2008 - 2010: Development of demo centres and support of training institutions - Exchange of lecturers and centre heads - Exchange of quality assurance concepts for occupational further education, joint projects for the establishment of national transfer centres for industry - Media concepts and successful marketing concepts - Europe-wide information campaigns In case of interest, please contact: Handwerkszentrum-Wohnen im Alter, Mrs Gabriele Poth: mailto:poth@uzh.hwk-duesseldorf.de . +08: The Demographic Challenge - Expert Opinions from North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The decline of German population and population ageing will have quite different effects on the cities and municipalities in the Muensterland and Emscher-Lippe regions of North Rhine-Westphalia. Accordingly, the threats posed by that change differ, as do the coping strategies that have to be developed. This is the result of a study done by the chamber of commerce of North Westphalia (Industrie- und Handelskammer Nord Westfalen). This is the first study dealing with changing demand patterns on a municipality level in Germany. The study report (in German) can be downloaded from here: http://www.ihk-nordwestfalen.de/volkswirtschaft_statistik/bindata/Gutachten_Demografie_2005_01.pdf . +09: Culture for the Generation 55plus - The Project "MehrKultur 55plus" in North Rhine-Westphalia / Germany. The project "MehrKultur 55plus" has relaunched its website to offer even more information on culture and the generation 55+. The project is managed by the Institute for Education and Culture (Institut für Bildung und Kultur, IBK) and aims to extend, develop, and promote the range of cultural activities offered to older people. Special attendance is given to projects organised by the target group itself, i.e. by elderly people interested and/or active in culture and arts. This group is constantly growing owing to the fact that elderly people become more and more active and independent. In 8 regions of North Rhine-Westphalia, "MehrKultur 55plus" brings together interested elderly people and persons/institutions engaged in the cultural sector. Results of this cooperation include local projects and networks as well as new cultural programmes and offers. The project's website ( http://www.ibk-kultur.de/senioren/ ) contains up-to-date information on this very lively process. It also offers a calendar of dates for the local meetings, which are open to new participants from all areas: seniors, cultural organisations, multipliers, etc. People with an interest in the topic are invited to contact the local persons in charge. The website also offers background information, event dates, links, and literature lists. People offering cultural products or services to elderly people can advertise their offers on the website. The project "MehrKultur 55plus" is financed by the Ministry for Generation, Family, Women and Integration of North Rhine-Westphalia. The initiative would welcome other partners from European regions from within and outside the SEN@ER network for the development of activities in and around the area of "Europe and generationPlus". Please contact: Gerda Sieben, Institut für Bildung und Kultur, Küppelstein 34, D - 42857 Remscheid, Fon. 0049 2191 794 294, e-mail: mailto:sieben@ibk-kultur.de . +10: Response options for retail and wholesale organisations in an ageing society - a Study from North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. Minister Armin Laschet, Minister for Generations, Family, Women and Integration of North Rhine-Westphalia, who is now responsible for the silver economy as part of the regional government and supporting SEN@ER as former member of the European parliament, has presented the study "Response options for retail and wholesale organisations in an ageing society" ("Reaktionsmöglichkeiten für Handelsunternehmungen im Hinblick auf die Veränderungen der Altersstruktur") at a press conference in Duesseldorf on 8 September 2005. The press conference was widely acknowledged in the media. Details (in German) can be found at the ministry website: http://www.mgffi.nrw.de/presse/pm2005/pm050908a.htm . The study (in German) is available for download (3.4 MB) at: http://www.seniorenwirt.de/ . [Section Two ends]. ++ Section Three: Reports from the SEN@ER Network and the European SEN@ER Secretariat. +11: SEN@ER SIG "Financial Services" event in Brussels on 8 - 9 March 2006 The SEN@ER partner regions North Rhine-Westphalia and the West Midlands are going to hold a conference on "Financial Services: Silver Economy in Europe" in Brussels. The objectives are: - Creating awareness for the changing demands from the elderly on the financial services industry - Co-operation in the banking sector under SEN@ER - Making Europe more competitive in the silver economy - In North Rhine-Westphalia, the State Government and the banks are innovating the financial services sector with a view to improving the quality of living of senior citizens, creating jobs in the process and strengthening Europe's competitiveness Target groups are: - EU institutions and organisations such as AGE Concern, European industry groups and community organisations - Businesses of the silver economy - Lending institutions - NRW institutions (State Government, local government institutions, chambers of commerce, association of welfare groups) Minister Armin Laschet will open the event. The organisers are: NRW Government, West Midlands, IAT, NRW Chamber of Commerce, BfS, NRW Federation of Banks The programme can be downloaded here: http://www.silvereconomy-europe.org/sigs/finances/index.htm . +12: Successful meeting of SEN@ER SIG "Culture" on 25 November 2005, the second one to follow on 31 March 2006. The SIG "Culture" organised its first workshop in Düsseldorf, Germany on 25th November 2005. The meeting aimed at: - establishing an initial level of encounter and discussion - exchanging ideas and experiences - developing joint goals and bi- and multilateral project ideas - preparing a European Workshop in the framework of the German BAGSO Conference for Older People in Cologne, 16th-18th of May 2006 where age-culture.net shall be presented - drafting a European Memorandum: Age & Cultural Economy - presenting the network as a Special Interest Group "Culture & Tourism" at the next European SEN@ER Conference in Maastricht on 2 - 3 November 2006 The second meeting of SEN@ER SIG "Culture" will take place on 31 March 2006 in Düsseldorf. +13: SEN@ER contribution to the consultation on "Cohesion Policy in Support of Growth and Jobs: Community Strategic Guidelines, 2007-2013". An opinion was expressed and submitted to the above consultation process by the Ministry for Intergenerational Affairs, Family, Women and Integration of North Rhine-Westfalia (Germany), and the SEN@ER - Silver Economy Network of European Regions, European Secretariat. It is hoped that it will help European policy makers in integrating the topic of "Silver Economy" as a topic into the European Structural Funds. All SEN@ER partners were encouraged to also submit similar contributions to this or other relevant consultation processes started by the European Commission. +14: European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing meetings attended by the European SEN@ER Secretariat. The Intergroup on Ageing consists of 26 members, i.e. parliamentarians from the European Parliament. It has started its activities again in 2005 with several meetings which were also attended by a member of the European SEN@ER Secretariat since these meetings can be seen as an opportunity to bring the topic of and issues around the "Silver Economy" forward at a European level to pave its way - through the European Parliament - on to the European political agenda and funding programmes. +15: SEN@ER leaflet in English and German now available. The graphically designed SEN@ER flyer has now become available as pdf files for download from the SEN@ER website. It has been developed as a six-page leporello which nicely fits into an ordinary C1 envelope. Printed versions of the flyer will become available later in January 2006. The leaflet can be downloaded from here: http://www.silvereconomy-europe.org/infobase/sener/index.htm . +16: SEN@ER at workshops: "Towards Inclusive Online Provision of Public Services in European Cities and Regions" and "The contribution of ICT to active ageing in work and employment". At the workshop "Towards Inclusive Online Provision of Public Services in European Cities and Regions" SEN@ER brochures were distributed to make the initiative known among European cities and municipalities. The workshop which was attended by almost 100 participants mainly from European cities was organised jointly by the eUser project ( http://www.euser-eu.org/ ) together with EUROCITIES as part of the EUROCITIES Knowledge Society Forum (EKSF) - Telecities 2005 Autumn Event on "Interoperability and greater cost-effectiveness of the provision of public services" on 14 October 2005 in Prague. Also the latest results from the representative eUser population survey 2005 in European countries for the domains eGovernment, eHealth and eLearning were presented along with a series of European good-practices from these domains. The programme can be looked at here: http://www.telecities-prague.cz/ . Event details can also be found on the eUser website: http://www.euser-eu.org/NewsItem.asp?CaseTitleID=810 . eUser is a major research and support project which has set out to provide solid evidence as to users' real needs regarding eGovernment, eHealth and eLearning offers, as well as providing data about their attitudes and the uptake levels of current public online services. The project supports the European Commission's IST (Information Society Technology) programme to achieve its key objectives of putting the user and his/her needs at the centre of IST developments. It provides empirical information on key public eServices domains -eGovernment, eHealth, eLearning - identified as priorities by the European Council, and assesses the demand/supply match in these fields. Within the framework of the European Union's IST programme the eInclusion@EU project organised an open workshop entitled "The contribution of ICT to active ageing in work and employment" on 17th October 2005 in Brussels. As a so-called coordination action, the eInclusion@EU initiative aims at contributing to the development of evidence-based eInclusion and eAccessibility policies at EU and Member State levels. In this context, the workshop had the aim to highlight the interrelationship between eInclusion and active ageing strategies - as far as they concern the working sphere. This workshop was organised back to back with the final conference of the ActivAge project - a three years research cooperation between European experts investigating challenges posed by ageing societies for different policy sectors such as labour markets, pension systems and health care systems, as well as the impact of the active ageing paradigm on civil society. The workshop programme is available online at: http://www.einclusion-eu.org/UserEventRegistration.asp?UserEventID=2&CaseTitleID=462&MenuID=142 . The relevant project websites are as follows: eInclusion@EU: http://www.einclusion-eu.org/ and ActivAge: http://www.iccr-international.org/activage/ . [Section Three ends]. ++ Section Four: European Commission. +17: IST call for proposals including the topic of "ambient assisted living in the ageing society" with submission deadline 25 April 2006. The European Commission has published a call for proposals under the information society technologies (IST) thematic priority of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). The call addresses the following areas: - advanced robotics; - ambient assisted living in the ageing society; - search engines for audio-visual content; - accompanying action in support of participation in Community information communication technologies (ICT) research; - international cooperation. The total indicative budget for this call is 140 million euro. The full details of the call: http://icadc.cordis.lu/fep-cgi/srchidadb?CALLER=EN_NEWS&ACTION=D&RCN=24971&DOC=2&CAT=NEWS&QUERY=1 . Remark: The deadline for submitting proposal documents is 25.4.2006. +18: Information Technology - Commission Seeks Consensus on Improving Accessibility. Making the benefits of information and communication technology available to everyone is a key element of the European Commission's i2010 initiative, but there will be no legislation requiring companies and member states to ensure that the elderly and people with disabilities - who account for around 20% of the EU population - are granted equal access to such benefits. The Commission's DG Information Society and Media announced on September 15 that it would seek consensus among member states on a concerted approach to improving eAccessibility and on encouraging the ICT industry to develop new products. The Commission will review the sector again in two years time ahead of drawing up a new initiative on eInclusion in 2008, which, it says, could involve new legislation if insufficient progress has been made. The full text of the Commission's communication can be found here: http://europa.eu.int/information_society/policy/accessibility/com_ea_2005/a_documents/cec_com_eacc_2005.html . There is the likelihood that as part of the FP7 and in there the IST Programme calls for proposals will be launched which aim at the development of highly accessible products and services for elderly people in the European Union including product and services market validation and deployment projects which the SEN@ER partners and other institutions may be interested in. The European SEN@ER Secretariat will collect expressions of interest and act as brokerage instance should a sufficient number of applications and expressions of interest be achieved. +19: i2010 workshop on "Digital inclusion and participation" on 23 September 2005 in Brussels, Belgium. This workshop aimed at setting the scene for i2010 ambitions in the field of inclusion. The workshop provided an occasion for debate between stakeholders on relevant issues around e-Inclusion. Representatives from civil society, industry and academia will had the opportunity to exchange views with representatives of Member States and Commission services. The mid-term review of the eEurope 2005 Action Plan, undertaken in 2003, identified e-inclusion issues as a key challenge and called for actions in this field. This workshop presented the results of all initiatives launched during the last two years. At this occasion, the report drawn up by the Expert Section of the eEurope Advisory Group, was presented. The workshop was also actively attended by a member of the European SEN@ER Secretariat together with the MEP and Vice President of the European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing together with whom the Silver Economy topic and initiative was strongly emphasised as a necessary initiative for Europe in a key note speech. [Section Four ends]. ++ Section Five: Cooperation With the European Union, the European Parliament and Further European Stakeholders. +20: SEN@ER contributed to two Commission consultation processes. The Ministry for Intergenerational Affairs, Family, Women and Integration of North Rhine-Westfalia (Germany), as lead partner of the Silver Economy Network of European Regions, SEN@ER expressed an opinion to the two following consultation processes opened by the Commission: 1) Green Paper: "Confronting demographic change: a new solidarity between the generations", 2) "Cohesion Policy in Support of Growth and Jobs: Community Strategic Guidelines, 2007-2013". +21 The European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing. The European Parliament has established 24 Intergroups which deal with a specific topic of high political interest ranging from SMEs, Globalisation to Tourism and Ageing. The Intergroup on Ageing consists of 26 members, i.e. parliamentarians from the European Parliament. It has started its activities again in 2005 with several meetings which were also attended by a member of the European SEN@ER Secretariat since these meetings can be seen as an opportunity to bring the topic of and issues around the "Silver Economy" forward at a European level to pave its way - through the European Parliament - on to the European political agenda and funding programmes. So far the European SEN@ER Secretariat managed to successfully team up with the Intergroup's vice president and MEP Lambert van Nistelrooij who became fascinated by the Silver Economy initiative and now is one of its active and enthusiastic proponents at European level. +22: Meeting of the European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing on "The impact of Ageing on the future of cohesion and research policies in the EU", held on the 3 May 2005. Ageing is going to impact on every aspect of our societies and Europe needs to understand it fully and respond at every level of Government", said Lambert van Nistelrooij, MEP and co-President of the Intergroup on Ageing, after a meeting discussing the importance of ageing for both European research and cohesion policies held jointly with AGE, the European Older People's Platform on the 3 May 2005 which was attended by a member from the SEN@ER European Secretariat . In the context of Cohesion Policy, ensuring that EU Member States and regional and local institutions respond to the impact of these changes for their territories is going to be crucial. Each region will face different demographic circumstances and they will need to develop policies to sustain their communities. Priorities will include the promotion of high levels of employment for older workers to ensure economic stability and social cohesion. Public authorities at these levels will also need to ensure that housing and services are designed for an increasing number of older citizens. These issues present both opportunities and challenges for those working on the 2007/13 European structural funds programmes. In the context of European research policies, gaps in knowledge in areas such as age discrimination, the adaptation of society to older people and the impact of increased life expectancy on different aspects of our society need to be filled urgently. Participants at the meeting who included MEP's from a range of member states, academics and representatives of European regions recognised that consideration of ageing has tended to focus on the cost of more older people on public finances. The meeting acknowledged that more needs to be done to promote awareness of the vital role of older people in leading their communities, and also in providing support and care to younger people and older, dependant people. Many opportunities to implement ageing-related policies and actions in the European policy on cohesion (2007-2013) exist. However, in the 7th Framework programme on Research and Development within the Regional funds, more action programmes on ageing need to be prioritised and realised. "The members of the European Parliament's Intergroup on Ageing will work to promote these aims" concluded Lambert van Nistelrooij. Contact: Lambert van Nistelrooij, e-mail: mailto:lvannistelrooij@europarl.eu.int . +23: Meeting of the European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing on the "Employment of Older Workers: examples of good practice", held on the 20 September 2005. On 20 September, at the European Parliament in Brussels, a debate took place to address the major issues of demographic change facing the EU. Speakers included representatives from the Dublin Foundation for the Improvement of Living & Working Conditions, the Government of Finland, UNICE and the ETUC, AGE and the European Commission, and followed the publication of the Commission Green Paper: "Confronting demographic change: a new solidarity between the generations". Philip Bushill-Matthews, MEP, Co-President of the Parliamentary Intergroup on Ageing, Parliamentary Rapporteur on the Green Paper and also Chairman of the meeting said: "People often talk about the Lisbon Agenda, stating that the objective of the EU was to become the most competitive economy in the world by 2010. This is only part of the story. One of the key objectives also agreed at Lisbon was that 50 per cent of workers over the age of 55 should still be in employment by 2010 - instead of being encouraged to retire early. There is much to be done by all stakeholders if this objective is to be realised, and this meeting was a key step to explore best practice among different Member States in this important area." Contact: Philip Bushill-Matthews, e-mail: mailto:pbushill@europarl.eu.int . [Section Five ends]. ++ Section Six: Conferences and Projects. +24: 2nd European Silver Economy Conference 2006 in Maastricht. The preparation of the second European Silver Economy Conference - which will take place on 2 - 3 November 2006 in Maastricht - is making good progress. It was further discussed and developed at and after the 5th SEN@ER meeting on 24 October 2005 in Brussels which was hosted by the Province of Limburg. During this meeting, possibilities for co-operation and participation were be discussed. A first, preliminary programme structure for the conference is already available: Wednesday, 1 November 2006 On invitation: 19.00 hours: Word of welcome from the Major of Maastricht Thursday, 2 November 2006 08.00 hours: Registration 08.30 hours: Welcome with coffee/tea 10.00 hours: Plenary meeting 12.30 hours: Lunch 14.00 hours: Start interactive workshops 16.30 hours: End interactive workshops On invitation: 19.00 hours: Bustour to Vip-dinner 20.00 hours: Start Vip-dinner 23.00 hours: Return to hotels Friday, 3 November 2006 09.30 hours: Welcome with coffee/tea 10.00 hours: Plenary meeting 12.30 hours: Lunch 14.00 hours: Free programme +25: Times of Societal Change - Active Ageing - Develop Joint Perspectives in the Euregio. SENIORitas and its partners will hold a euregional workshop for professionals in the fields of home-based services and tourism for older people in North Rhine-Westphalia and for members of the German-speaking community in Belgium and of the province of Limburg. Against the background of demographic change and the changing relevance of the ageing process, the workshop aims to discuss existing offers on the silver market and develop new concepts. The exchange of ideas and experiences will help to better meet the needs of ageing people. To ensure the continued exchange and cooperation, a euregional network will be created. The workshop was held on 2 November 2005 in Aachen/Germany. It was be opened by minister Armin Laschet from North Rhine-Westphalia and Jean Severijns from the province of Limburg. Further information including the workshop brochure (in German) and all presentations and speeches, can be downloaded from the SEN@ER website: http://www.silvereconomy-europe.org/events/2006/workshops.htm . +26: Healthy Ageing in Europe - an international symposium to take place from 8 - 9 March 2006 in the House of Industry in Vienna, Austria. On the occasion of the Austrian EU-Presidency EHAAF (European Healthy Ageing Advocacy Forum) a network of 10 European NGOs, invites to the above international symposium to take place from 8 - 9 March 2006 in the House of Industry in Vienna, Austria. Free admission but registration is required. More information can be found here: http://www.eurag.at/ . +27: eHealth 2006 - e-Health in the Europe of the Regions: Networks for Health; High Level Conference in Malaga, Spain, May 10-12, 2006. The website is available at: http://www.ehealthconference2006.org/ or contact mailto:info@ehealthconference2006.org/ . +28: AGE - The European Older People' Platform: International Conference on Ageing, Disability and Independence (ICADI) 2006. The International Conference on Ageing, Disability and Independence (ICADI) 2006 will take place in St. Petersburg, Florida, from 1 to 4 February 2006. This conference, hosted by the University of Florida Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centre on Technology and Ageing, will bring together researchers, practitioners, consumers, business leaders and people involved in aging policy to focus on these issues. The conference structure includes a mix of submitted papers, posters, technology demonstrations and keynote speakers. For more information about the conference and guidelines for paper submission, please consult the conference website: http://www.icadi.phhp.ufl.edu/ . +29: The International Federation on Ageing (IFA): 8. Global Conference Global ageing - the North-South Challenge. The 8th Global Conference of the International Federation on Ageing (IFA) will take place in Copenhagen from 30 May to 2 June 2006. The demographics of global ageing introduces ageing as a compounding factor in the global population development - with those countries least adapted to meeting the challenges facing the most dramatic development in the course of the next 50 years. In becoming a global phenomenon, ageing becomes a global responsibility. The IFA 8th Global Conference Copenhagen will emphasize this fact and at the same time ensure that global responsibility becomes everyone's responsibility. By highlighting ageing as a truly global issue of demographically staggering dimensions, the aim is not simply to focus on the situation of those countries with the demographic quake. The primary aim of this international Conference is to involve all actors in meeting the challenges of global ageing as well as meeting the challenges in their own environment. The Conference is built around four themes: - The Economics of Ageing - The Opportunities of Ageing - Active Ageing / Ageing Well - Empowerment / Participation Further information can be obtained from the conference website: http://www.global-ageing.dk/ . +30: User-orientation in Online Public Services in eHealth, eLearning and eGovernment: First results from an EC-funded project. Several new publications of the eUser project have been released in October 2005 which are all made available on the eUser Online Knowledge Base under http://www.euser-eu.org/ . These include the publications: User-orientation in Online Public Services in eHealth, eLearning and eGovernment - Results from a Population Survey in 10 EU Member States: http://www.euser-eu.org/eUSER_PopulationSurveyStatistics.asp?MenuID=73 . User-Orientation Profiles of Online Services in and good practices from the 25 EU Member States: http://www.euser-eu.org/ShowAnalysisReport.asp?IDFocusAnalysis1=5 . Including: - Statistics on User needs, preferences and requirements concerning European online public services from the eUser population survey 2005 in 10 selected EU member states including: Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the United Kingdom as old and Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia from the new member states. It consisted of 10,000 successful interviews in these countries. - User-orientation Profiles of online public services for each of the 25 EU member states - Good practices: 21 cases in eGovernment, eHealth and eLearning eUser Country Briefs for each of the EU25 countries on eGovernment, eHealth and eLearning: http://www.euser-eu.org/euser_countrybrief.asp?MenuID=83 . Including information on public sector readiness for user-oriented online service provision based on own desk research, interviews with experts and stakeholders, and secondary data sources such as Eurostat and other Commission Services. Altogether 25 eUser Country Briefs are available in a common format, one for each member of the enlarged European Union. Country background for eServices (eGovernment, eHealth and eLearning) for all 25 EU member states are available as a searchable online knowledge base. In a further step the survey data can be analysed according to different age groups which will provide the opportunity to draw differences in terms of access, use, interest in an barriers to the use of online public services by seniors but also other groups of citizens such as those with disabilities and special needs. We will keep you posted about any further results of the EC-funded IST project: For further details please contact: Karsten Gareis at mailto:karsten.gareis@empirica.com . [Section Six ends]. ++ End Notes. + Contact. If you are interested in further information regarding the Silver Economy Network of European Regions please visit our website at http://www.silvereconomy-europe.org/ or contact us: Responsible as SEN@ER lead partner region at the regional government of North Rhine-Westphalia: Ministry for Intergenerational Affairs, Family, Women and Integration of North Rhine-Westfalia Dr. Claus Eppe Head of Unit Silver Economy, Media Competence Horionplatz 1, D-40213 Düsseldorf Phone: +49 (2 11) 8 618-3320 mailto:claus.eppe@mgffi.nrw.de European SEN@ER Secretariat Ingo Meyer, Christiane Krupp, Werner B. Korte empirica Gesellschaft für Kommunikations- und Technologieforschung mbH Oxfordstr. 2, D - 53111 Bonn Phone: +49 (2 28) 9 85 30-0 Fax: +49 (2 28) 9 85 30-12 mailto: sener@empirica.com http://www.empirica.com/ + Disclaimer. You receive this newsletter because you are subscribed to our mailing list. If you do not wish to receive further newsletters from us please send a message to mailto:sener@empirica.com . We apologize for any inconveniences caused by cross-postings or unsolicited mailings. + Copyright notice. Copyright 2005 Silver Economy Network of European Regions http://www.silvereconomy-europe.org/ , mailto:sener@empirica.com . This newsletter or part of this newsletter may be reproduced as long as this copyright notice (including the website address) is included. Please also inform the editor when you are reproducing the content of the newsletter. + TEN Standard. This Newsletter conforms to the Text E-Mail Newsletter (TEN) Standard. The TEN Standard is designed to ease navigation of plain text email newsletters by all readers, including those using special access technologies especially vision-impaired people. More information can be obtained here: http://www.headstar.com/ten/ . [End Notes ends]. [Newsletter ends].