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Civic Engagement in an Older America E-Newsletter March, 2011 CONTENTS Civic Engagement in an Older America The Purpose Prize: Spread the Word! Age4Action Takes Action to Save Service ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Civic Engagement in an Older America
The Gerontological Society of America (GSA)'s civic engagement
project, funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies, has released a capstone
publication that highlights and advances research on civic engagement
in later life by bringing together "classic" articles previously
published in GSA's journals with new articles that review the state-of-the-science
to date for a particular area of civic engagement, identify research
gaps, and provide direction for future research. The introductory
chapter, "The
Civic Enterprise: Advancing Civic Engagement Opportunities in Later
Life", is available for free. Find out how to purchase
the book or request
a desk copy. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Purpose Prize: Spread the Word!
In its sixth year, The Purpose Prize provides major
recognition to community leaders, age 60 years and older, who are
creating new ways to solve our most pressing social issues--from
health care to the environment, poverty to education. It is the
nation's only large-scale investment in social innovators in the
second half of life. Nominations--including self-nominations--are
due by March 31, 2011, at http://www.encore.org/prize.
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The stereotype that Internet users are 'Bowling Alone' may require
some re-thinking as our virtual worlds and daily lives become increasingly
connected. According to a new
survey from Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project,
Internet users are more likely to be active with some kind of volunteer
organization or group than those who don't go online. Specifically,
Internet users report higher rates of charitable donations, volunteering,
attending meetings and events and taking leadership roles. The survey
notes important variations by gender, age, racial and ethnic group,
and socio-economic status. The full report is available here. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coming of Age, a Philadelphia-based national initiative to promote age 50+ civic engagement, has published a nine-chapter e-book that explores challenging issues confronting people age 50+. Meant to "start the conversation" for those seeking answers to questions about what comes next, The Age for Change addresses topics such as compelling ways to become engaged in one's community, dealing with adult children, ending the pain of troubled relationships, creating community, age 50+ love, and more. The e-book is available for free at http://ebook.comingofage.org/. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Age4Action Takes Action to Save Service
Age4Action, a national movement to mobilize adults 50+ to be dynamic
advocates, valued workers, committed volunteers, and lifelong learners,
has joined with other service organizations to prevent the elimination
of funding for the Corporation for National and Community Service.
Such a drastic funding cut, as passed in the House of Representatives
on February 19th, would cause local communities to lose the important
support from organizations like Foster Grandparents, Senior Companions,
Retired Senior Volunteer Program, and Americorps. Also, the gains
obtained through the bipartisan Kennedy Serve America Act would
be lost if the funding cuts approved by the House of Representatives
became law. Check out Age4Action's
blog to comment on this movement to save national service and
sign up for the monthly
e-newsletter to receive policy and network updates, new resources,
and advocacy tools. |
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