Age-Friendly and Climate Ready? The Importance of Climate Change to Age-Friendly Transformations
Erica Husser, Erin Kitt-Lewis, Grace Behr, Michael McShane, Marie Boltz

TL;DR
This study explores how climate change affects older adults and how age-friendly initiatives can integrate climate preparedness to improve community resilience.
Contribution
The study introduces the integration of climate change preparedness into age-friendly initiatives to enhance community resilience and reduce ageism.
Findings
Older adults and others consistently value the natural environment.
Participants commonly felt others don't care enough about climate issues.
There is a desire among participants to share knowledge about climate preparedness.
Abstract
Significant investments in Age-Friendly initiatives demonstrate a growing social commitment to reducing ageism and enhancing quality of life for older adults. Exposure to the health impacts of climate change place older adults living alone at high risk for suffering and mortality. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore perceptions of the natural environment (importance and concern) and preparation for extreme weather events across the age-spectrum. Researchers in a college of nursing partnered with a mobile clinic and attended eight events in five rural communities. We conducted 41 in-person face-to-face semi-structured interviews with randomly selected participants. Iterative thematic analysis resulted in six major themes: Importance of the Natural Environment, Concerns about the Natural Environment, Experiences with Extreme Weather, Preparing for Weather Emergencies,…
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Taxonomy
TopicsClimate Change and Health Impacts · Aging and Gerontology Research · Health disparities and outcomes
