Golden autumn seniors Erasmus Project

Project Title

Golden autumn seniors

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Health and wellbeing; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning

Project Summary

The societies of the European Union countries are becoming more and more aging every year. At the same time, the increase in the level and availability of medical services means that the average age of seniors is systematically growing. This forces European states to intensify their efforts aimed at improving the physical and mental condition of seniors and their activation to active participation in social and economic life of local communities.
Many processes related to the aging of society, which is currently observed in Poland or in the countries of the former Eastern Bloc, occurred already in the countries of the so-called “old Union”, in which demographic and economic changes were diagnosed and ways to support seniors were worked out. At the same time, the traditional models of the multigenerational family, which is a strong support for the elderly and a perfect model of intergenerational integration, are still largely preserved in Poland.
Although health problems of the elderly are very similar in all European countries, due to different levels of economic development and varying degrees of cultural and social changes, the ways of solving these problems are different in different countries.
The project “Golden autumn of seniors” assumes the exchange of knowledge, experience, skills and competences between groups of leaders working for the benefit of seniors, especially in the aspect of their health, physical and mental fitness, as well as their social activity. The project will be attended by people from Poland and Lithuania – countries of the former Eastern bloc, as well as from Germany and Italy – countries of the so-called “old Union”. This will allow the exchange of various experiences resulting from different realities and ways of working for the benefit of seniors. The project will be recruited by leaders – specialists and specialists working for the elderly: doctors, nurses, nutritionists, physiotherapists, psychologists, local government, teachers, volunteers. They will host a series of meetings in individual countries, which will allow you to get acquainted in detail with the specificity of health problems of older people and with the methods of promoting healthy behavior and psychophysical activity of these people in individual countries. During the meetings, there will also be workshops and training sessions as well as study visits. Classes will be devoted, among other things, to healthy nutrition based on national culinary traditions, physical activity of older people (sport, physical exercise improving fitness, tourism, recreation), “gymnastics of minds” (memory exercises, counteracting undesirable changes in the mind), social activity of people older (intergenerational integration, senior volunteering, community involvement) and others. An innovative element of the project is the fact that participants will not be limited only to passive acquisition of knowledge during lectures, etc. but through mutual discussion they will try to develop new solutions together, share ideas and analyze the possibilities of transferring their own “good practices” to realities in other countries.
The project is not limited to the training of leaders who are its direct participants. It was assumed that during the project participants – leaders will open themselves to the broadly understood community of seniors. Among other things, there will be a conference dedicated to the problems of improving physical, mental and health of the elderly in each country. Seniors from local communities will be invited to these conferences – it will be an opportunity to disseminate knowledge and ideas not only among leaders, but also among seniors who are to be the final beneficiaries of activities undertaken as part of the program. In addition, a website will be created and videos about topics related to health and activity of older people will be shot. These materials will be available on the Internet during the project grass and after its completion. This will allow to transfer the knowledge and information collected as part of the program of potentially unlimited number of seniors. Printed materials will also be prepared, which the leaders will be able to use during meetings with seniors, on which they will promote a healthy and active lifestyle.
The activities planned in the project will lead to an increase in participants’ knowledge and competences, which in the future will result in their more effective work for health education of seniors. It is also assumed that established contacts and initiated cooperation will be continued also after the end of the project.

Project Website

http://erasmusplus.schs.pl/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 101180 Eur

Project Coordinator

Stowarzyszenie Seniorzy dla Chorzowa i Slaska & Country: PL

Project Partners

• Kurybisku zmoniu asociacija “ARTyn”
• Associazione Abruzzo Ontario