22 de June de 2021
June 22, 2021 The National Rural Network organized the experience exchange "LEADER and Active Aging in Rural Areas" to discuss and reflect on the opportunities, challenges, and problems associated with this process. The meeting brought together more than 100 people from different fields, with the aim of learning firsthand about the work that Local Action Groups are doing to achieve active, dignified, quality, and healthy aging for people living in rural areas.
- Active aging is an opportunity for rural development, job creation, and population retention in rural areas.
- Local Action Groups play a key role in promoting projects that give visibility and voice to older people in rural areas.
Sergio Andrés Cabello, a professor at the University of La Rioja , highlighted in his speech that rural Spain presents significant differences in the demographic structures of each of the Autonomous Communities, and therefore the solutions cannot, and should not, be homogeneous for all territories . According to his analysis, the fight against depopulation also involves reversing the demographic structures, which are increasingly ageing and masculinized in rural areas. To this end, he emphasized the importance of seeking new models of active aging, which combine preventive measures to combat loneliness, reverse the socially and traditionally differentiated gender roles, and raise awareness to change the stereotypes that exist regarding older people in rural areas.
Active aging
Four lines of action are identified to promote this type of active aging:
- Promote social support
- Facilitate mobility
- Promote associations ; offer an active role to older adults , facilitating access to resources and information, as well as assistance at senior centers.
- Channeling leisure time into a healthy lifestyle . All of this must be accompanied, in parallel, by a process of ongoing participation , involving the entire population as a whole, allowing for greater empowerment of older adults by enhancing their sense of belonging and belonging to the region .
It is important to note that, although the depopulation of rural areas in some territories seems unstoppable, there is a growing trend of new arrivals : older people who retire and decide to return to their hometowns. Consequently, this new scenario is generating new needs linked to active aging, where new and different services related primarily to leisure and health are in demand.
This reality is reflected in the establishment of day centers and senior residences , where, as an example and without serving as a response or solution, their contribution offers a very active participation for the region: in addition to fulfilling a social mission, where initiatives and alternatives to loneliness are facilitated, they also generate a cycle of economic activity by promoting complementary services. This dynamism results in the creation and maintenance of jobs, thus favoring the settlement of the population.
GAL Projects
An example of this new reality is the Campo Romanos residence in Teruel. A project financed with LEADER funds and supported by the GAL ADRI Jiloca Gallocanta , which employs more than 20 people, and whose objective is to meet the needs of the elderly in its region, thus achieving its ultimate goal: that the elderly can stay and live in their town. Marta Reinares, promoter of the project, also participating in the dialogue table of this exchange of experiences, received the Excellence Award for Innovation in the diversification of economic activity in rural areas , awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in 2018, in recognition of her effort and dedication in launching this project.
In addition, the discussion table also included the participation of the GAL ADESVAL , in the province of Cáceres, and its cooperation project ESPACIOS SENIOR , which works to create communities and territories in favor of older people by promoting participation, a new governance model, and the provision of local services that allow for job creation in rural areas.
"If we don't give this group a voice, they'll eventually become invisible. We have to give voice to the elderly. Local Action Groups have the power to make a difference." Pilar Solano, Manager of ADESVAL.
Another project included in this event was CIVITAS , a social innovation project in rural areas coordinated by the Collective GAL for Rural Development of Tierra de Campos , in Castilla y León, which aims to build a bridge between the elderly in rural areas and unemployed people in the region seeking employment in the field of social and healthcare. Finally, the Cantabrian Rural Development Network (Red Cántabra de Desarrollo Rural Cantabria) presented the collaboration agreement it has signed with the Permanent University ( UNATE ), as a joint commitment to generate alliances and projects that benefit the region's elderly population for active and healthy aging. These include training programs, sustainable tourism, conferences, workshops, and other cultural and social programs.