Total: 405 good practice(s). Download
The "Silver Track" of the Venture Builder Programme provides a 12-year training course on entrepreneurship for individuals aged 50 years or over (considered as "young seniors") to equip them with skills, confidence, and support to start and run their own businesses. Each participant is also paired with an experienced mentor. Moreover, the programme provides seed funding of SGD4,500 upon completion of the course and access to loans. The emphasis is on "impact-driven ventures", including in sectors of care for older persons, health and wellbeing and social services.
Women and men aged 50 years or over.
The Venture Builder Silver Track has contributed to strengthening older persons’ participation in entrepreneurship by equipping individuals aged 50+ with the skills, mentoring, and financial support needed to launch ventures, particularly in social impact and ageing-related sectors.
The programme builds on the broader policy infrastructure promoting life-long learning and active ageing. It builds on a public-private partnership, with financial support from donors.
The Venture Builder Silver Track is a good practice because it transforms ageing into an opportunity by enabling older persons to become entrepreneurs. It provides tailored training, mentorship, and funding to overcome barriers faced by seniors, while leveraging their experience to generate innovative solutions, particularly in the ageing sector. Through its integration with national lifelong learning and startup ecosystems, the programme promotes active ageing, economic participation, and social impact, offering a scalable model for other countries facing rapid population ageing.
The Korean word 'Eoulrim' describes the harmonious coming together of two or more things. The programme focuses on enhancing the accessibility of senior community centres and transforming them into inclusive spaces that welcome people of all ages, while maintaining their traditional functionality. Key actions include running intergenerational programmes, providing additional staff to support daily meal services, upgrading safety measures by installing fire detectors and refurbishing facilities. These measures aim to create senior centres that are enjoyable, welcoming, safe and accountable spaces that encourage interaction between different age groups.
Older persons in Seoul
The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to introduce programmes to engage young and middle-aged adults through three approaches: 1) A 'youth-linked' programme, which promotes leisure activities via university club talent donations, 2) A 'volunteer-based' programme, in which seniors at community centres directly teach local children subjects such as Go and history, and 3) A 'community-linked' programme, which opens diverse small groups and spaces. One 'Eoulrim (Harmony) Senior Centre' will be designated in each district. Centres will be selected through a public process, focusing on newly built centres of around 300 square metres. Each selected centre will receive annual operational funding of up to 10 million won to support activities and services. As part of its long-term strategy, Seoul aims to establish 400 Harmony Senior Centres by 2040.
The facilities promote active and healthy ageing by encouraging social participation, ensuring basic needs are met and providing safer living environments. Intergenerational programmes facilitate interaction between the young and the old, helping older adults to remain socially connected and valued within their communities.
“경로당에 청년들이 왜 왔지?”…서울에 세대통합 경로당 400개 조성 - 매일경제
The Pension Office, in collaboration with the Ministry of Social and Family Development, established the Senior Citizens Community Centre in Malé to empower older adults to contribute more actively to society. These centres provide opportunities for meaningful participation in social initiatives, with a key focus on enhancing the mental and social well-being of older persons
Older persons residing in Male' City
This place has provided space for socialization, skill building, and well-being for senior citizens, improving their quality of life and fostering a sense of belonging.
Developed and implemented by Ministry of Social and Family Development
Supporting Senior Citizens' Community Centres promotes active engagement, reduces social isolation, and enhances the mental and social well-being of older adults, allowing them to remain meaningful contributors to society.
In its work towards strengthening inclusiveness and aspiring to achieve equal participation and representation, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) registered its very first Net’s Senior Citizens Association (NSCA) as a legal entity at both the state and national level in October 2021. Registering NSCA as a legal entity provides an enabling environment for the senior citizens to be organized, have a collective voice, and be able to organize future dialogues with the municipal and state government to identify the strategies to address the needs of the senior citizens not only in Net’s municipal but that of Pohnpei state. As the group evolved from a Women's organization, women are playing an active role in it.
Older persons in the Federated States of Micronesia
The Net’s Senior Citizens Association (NSCA) in Pohnpei State, Federated States of Micronesia, was developed through a bottom‑up, community‑driven process led by the Net Indigenous Women Council Association, which identified the lack of a formal platform for older persons to participate in local decision‑making as population ageing increased. Through consultations with senior citizens, the need for an organised and representative body was agreed, and modest financial and technical support was mobilised via the Pacific People Advancing Change (PPAC) programme of the Pacific Community (SPC). This support enabled the group to formalise its governance and successfully register as a legal entity at municipal, state, and national levels, giving older persons an official voice in dialogue with government authorities. Grounded in local cultural values that respect elders and emphasize intergenerational solidarity, the association now facilitates regular engagement between senior citizens and local government to identify needs and improve age‑responsive services.
It contributes to the empowerment of older persons.
New group paves way for FSM’s elderly to have a say in decision making process
The social enterprise, based in Seoul, offers employment to seniors aged over 55. These seniors work as monitors, overseeing inappropriate online content and advertisements. Working hours for seniors are 20 hours per week. As illegal content is continuously adapting, the company provides ongoing training as well. In addition, many social activities are reported within the company, through groups such as music bands, ping pong and hiking clubs.
Older persons seeking to participate in the labour force
The company created jobs for older persons and challenged the widespread perception that older persons could not perform IT and digital work effectively.
EverYoung Korea was founded in 2013 by Jeong Eun-seong to address age discrimination in employment and show that older adults can thrive in the digital economy. The company began by hiring seniors aged 55 and above to perform IT-related tasks for Naver, initially focusing on map blurring and later expanding to online content monitoring. Through structured training and short, flexible working hours, senior employees adapted successfully. By operating as a competitive business rather than a charity, EverYoung grew to employ hundreds of seniors, promoted equality and lifelong learning, and symbolized its mission with a retirement age of 100.
The company reframed older adults as productive contributors rather than dependents. Its model demonstrated that age-based employment barriers are socially constructed, not capability-based.
직원 평균 나이 64.9세… ‘시니어계의 삼성’이라 불리는 회사
A national advocacy campaign led by Australia’s Age Discrimination Commissioner aiming to eliminate ageism. It works to shift societal attitudes and norms through public pledges, quizzes, webinars, and awareness events like Ageism Awareness Day. The campaign targets stereotyping, discriminatory practices, and institutional biases affecting older people—particularly in areas like employment, media representation, and healthcare
Older persons in Australia
The campaign’s toolkit and public pledges have been adopted widely across sectors—from individuals and Workplace champions to media organizations, highlighting tangible cultural shift efforts. The campaign also triggered further evidence-based discussions of better representation of older persons in Government.
The EveryAGE Counts campaign was initiated through a collaborative effort between advocacy groups, researchers, and government bodies concerned about age discrimination in Australia. It began as a national coalition of organizations and individuals committed to ending ageism, spearheaded by the Australian Human Rights Commission and supported by community partners. The campaign was formally launched in October 2018 after extensive groundwork, including research on ageism’s impact, stakeholder engagement, and development of public education tools like pledges, quizzes, and awareness events. Its initiation was driven by growing evidence that ageism negatively affects employment, health care, and social inclusion, prompting a coordinated national response.
It is a good practice because it addresses an underlying problem that many older persons face, which is ageism. It includes interactive tools to challenge stereotypes such as quizzes and has a guidebook. It also represents political commitment through the National Human Rights Commission.
EveryAGE Counts
The UNDP Mongolia Accelerator Lab created an online outreach campaign to ensure inclusive digital access and digital literacy for older persons and vulnerable groups in Mongolia. The lab launched the “Tsahimijikh uu?” campaign, which created a Facebook page offering educational and entertainment content on digital literacy. The page was designed to support older persons and people with disabilities and address the gap identified in a 2021 Digital Skills Assessment. The page provided video tutorials, educational posts and shared content, engaging over 200,000 people within one and a half months.
Vulnerable groups in Mongolia, specifically elderly individuals and persons with disabilities—populations often marginalized in digital inclusion efforts.
The UN Joint Programme (2024–2025) improved digital skills and e-service access in underserved Mongolian regions, establishing the first Digital Training Facility and deploying mobile units to reach remote communities.
UNDP’s Accelerator Lab adapted the open-source Microsoft Digital Skills curriculum into Mongolian with added accessibility features such as voice-overs, subtitles, and plans for sign-language support. The content was delivered through a multi-channel approach, combining the “Would you go digital?” Facebook page with offline training sessions for deeper engagement. In partnership with national authorities and UNICEF, the UN Joint Programme also expanded infrastructure by operationalizing e-Mongolia services and establishing Mongolia’s first Digital Training Facility in Darkhan-Uul Province, along with mobile units to reach remote communities.
The initiative adapted a global digital skills curriculum with accessibility features for seniors and persons with disabilities, delivering it through online outreach and in-person training. Over 200,000 engagements in 1.5 months showed strong public interest. Physical training centers and mobile units anchored the program in underserved areas, and integration with the e-Mongolia platform under UN joint programming aligned it with Mongolia’s digital governance agenda.
Eye camps for older people, implemented by the charitable NGO HelpAge Sri Lanka, provides a mobile eye camp for older persons living in Wellawaya. This camp is a converted bus that is equipped with facilities for the trained personnel to provide eye exams and guidance on eyecare, with the scheme additionally providing free reading and prescription glasses for those in need. The service further helps people in need of surgery, namel cateract surery, to an eye hospital that provides services free of charge.
Elderly people from low-income backgrounds in Wellawaya, suffering from cataracts or poor vision, unable to afford spectacles or surgery.
The first mobile eye camp served about 700 older people, providing free eye examinations, reading and prescription glasses, eye-care education, and referrals for cataract surgeries in Colombo where operations and lenses were free. (WHO). The programme improved healthcare access for vulnerable seniors, strengthened community inclusion, enhanced well-being, and advanced gerontology services.
HelpAge Sri Lanka launched the project with a converted bus as a mobile clinic, staffed by trained professionals. Camps were held in seven locations, coordinated by local elders’ committees with support from temples. Services included examinations, spectacles, referrals, and education.
It effectively expanded access to essential eye care for disadvantaged older people through mobile, community-driven collaboration—reducing vulnerability and fostering inclusion.
A federal programme was implemented to develop “silver volunteering", aimed at engaging older persons (typically aged 55+) as active volunteers in social, cultural, and community initiatives. The programme established a nationwide infrastructure for senior volunteering, including the creation of regional centers of “silver volunteering", training systems, and support mechanisms for volunteer initiatives led by older people. The programme also supported the design and implementation of social projects initiated by senior volunteers.
The primary beneficiaries are older persons (“silver” age group) who participate as volunteers, gaining opportunities for social engagement, personal development, and contribution to society. Indirect beneficiaries include local communities and vulnerable population groups that receive support through projects implemented by senior volunteers. The programme has coverage across all regions of the Russian Federation, including urban and rural areas.
The programme operates on a nationwide scale, covering all regions of Russia and by 2025 attracted more than 12,000 registered senior volunteers through the DOBRO.RU platform. Regional centers for “silver volunteering" have been created, enabling the systematic involvement of older people in volunteer activities. The initiative has contributed to the expansion of senior‑led social projects and strengthened the visibility and social role of older volunteers at the community level.
The programme was implemented as a federal, multi‑stakeholder initiative led by the Dobro.rf ecosystem / Association of Volunteer Centres, with the charitable foundation “Vnuki” acting as programme operator and support from the charitable foundation “Memory of Generations”. It is implemented in partnership with federal institutions, including the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Russian Federation and Rospatriotcenter.
The programme shifted the narrative around older persons from “recipients of care” to active contributors to society; created systemic, nationwide infrastructure for senior volunteering rather than isolated projects; integrated capacity‑building, volunteering, and social participation in one model; enabled scalability through regional centres and a national digital platform; and supported active and healthy ageing by strengthening intergenerational solidarity and civic engagement.
Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province has promoted the development of age-friendly communities across the province through participation in the WHO Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities. The initiative supports local governments in creating environments that enable older persons to age actively, independently, safely, and with dignity.
The programme promotes age-friendly policies and actions across multiple domains, including outdoor spaces and buildings, transportation, housing, social participation, respect and social inclusion, civic participation and employment, communication and information, and community support and health services. The provincial government provides coordination, information sharing, and support for municipalities pursuing age-friendly community development and WHO recognition.
Direct beneficiaries are municipal governments and local communities. The ultimate beneficiaries are older persons living in Gangwon province as well as persons with disabilities and other groups who benefit from improved accessibility and inclusive community design.
The initiative has contributed to the expansion of age-friendly city development across Gangwon Province and strengthened local commitment to population ageing issues.
The initiative was developed in response to rapid population ageing and the need to create supportive environments for older people.
Implementation includes:
The provincial government plays a coordinating and supporting role while municipalities implement local activities adapted to their specific demographic and geographic contexts.
This initiative demonstrates a comprehensive and preventive approach to population ageing.
Key strengths include:
