Fairfield Joins the AARP Age-Friendly Initiative!
Your Voice Matters! If you are over the age of 45 we strongly encourage you to take the Age-Friendly Fairfield Survey. Younger residents may also want to take the survey on behalf of any older family member or friend - or just to weigh in on your hopes for Fairfield in the future. Tell us what’s important to you as you age, share your experiences, and let us know the extent to which our community is supporting the needs of Fairfield residents. The survey was developed by FSA and the Fairfield University Center for Social Impact and marks the first step of the process toward understanding residents’ perceptions of community resources and their needs while aging in Fairfield.
Click HERE for more information and to take the survey. |
Click HERE to view First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchik's announcement of Fairfield joining the AARP Network of Age-Friendly states and communities in March, 2023. This means that the community's elected leadership has made the commitment to actively work toward making our town an even greater place to live for people of all ages. The Town is only the seventh municipality in CT to join this network to date. The Age-Friendly Fairfield initiative, led by the Human Services Department in partnership with Fairfield Senior Advocates, will utilize an advisory group of community stakeholders. The process will begin with a comprehensive survey to be distributed in April, coordinated by Fairfield Senior Advocates and Fairfield University, as well as a listening session with residents to identify community age-friendly needs and opportunities.
People of all ages benefit from the adoption of policies and programs that make neighborhoods walkable, feature transportation options, enable access to key services, provide opportunities to participate in community activities, and support housing that’s affordable and adaptable. Well-designed, age-friendly communities foster economic
growth and make for happier, healthier residents of all ages. Communities and nations around the world are increasingly seeking to grow in a more age-friendly manner. Launched in 2012, the AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Communities is an organizational affiliate of the World Health Organization Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities, which was established in 2006 to help prepare for the world’s growing population of older adults. Membership in the AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Communities means that a community’s elected leadership has made a commitment to actively work with residents and local advocates to make their town, city, county or state an age-friendly place to live. |
Age-Friendly Membership Benefits
Aligning with AARP Age Friendly programs provides many benefits, including:
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Joining the Network
Communities enroll individually, as part of a region or as a state. All towns, villages, townships, boroughs, cities, counties and states seeking to enroll in the AARP age-friendly network are required to submit a membership application. In addition, the community must provide a letter of commitment signed by the jurisdiction’s highest elected official. Communities with council or commission forms of government typically pass a resolution in support of membership in the network. An enrollment certificate (pictured here) is issued once a community’s application has been reviewed and accepted by AARP. |
What Makes a Community "Age-Friendly"?
The most livable communities are those that enable residents to thrive at every age and every life stage – in other words, they are Age-Friendly. However, the availability and quality of certain community features – commonly referred to as the 8 Domains of Livability – do have a particular impact on the well-being of older adults. The domains framework can be used to organize and prioritize a community’s work to become more livable for older residents as well as people of all ages. While many members of the AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Communities tackle all eight domains at once, others choose to focus on fewer or combined domains. |