Intergenerational Community Building: Lessons Learned

This report, designed for national and local leaders, service providers, and policy makers, describes strategies, challenges, outcomes, and lessons learned from a multi-site national initiative that helps organizations and individuals break away from age-specific silos, create shared visions, engage in collective action, and expand social capital.

Download the Report.

Communities for All Ages: Creating vibrant, healthy places for growing up and growing older

Imagine a community that has:

Strong social networks that build connections across age, race, socio-economic classes and other traditional divides
Facilities and public spaces that foster interaction across generations
Opportunities for lifelong community engagement and learning
Diverse and affordable housing and transportation options that address people’s changing needs
A physical environment that promotes healthy living and the wise use of natural resources
An integrated system of accessible health and social services that supports individuals and families across the life
course

In 23 communities around the country, we are seeing this picture come to life. Communities for All Ages, coordinated by The Intergenerational Center at Temple University and underwritten by an array of national and local funders, is a place-based community building effort that helps organizations and individuals break away from age-specific silos, create shared visions, engage in collective action, and expand social capital.

Communities for All Ages is creating an inspiring new story about community change…about what happens in rural, urban, and suburban communities when organizations and residents of all ages intentionally come together to improve their communities.

It is about the recognition of our shared fate.

This report, designed for national and local leaders, service providers, and policy makers, describes strategies, challenges, outcomes, and lessons learned from this multi-site national initiative. The information is based on a cross-site evaluation conducted by the Center for Assessment and Policy Development from 2008-2012 for the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and insights garnered from technical assistance provided by The Intergenerational Center at Temple University. It demonstrates how intergenerational community building approaches can add value to community change efforts and promote interdependence among generations.