EPA and National Blueprint Office Launch Initiative to Recognize Age-Friendly Community Planning

The National Blueprint Office at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and partner organizations across the country, is helping to develop a national pilot program to recognize communities that factor into community planning, environmental considerations and the need for older adults to be physically active as they age.

The goal of the “Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging” program is to raise awareness in communities across the country about the importance of what EPA terms Smart Growth and its partner organizations identify as Active Aging for older adults.

A kick-off event for the pilot program will be held in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 25, which begins Active Aging Week. National organizations, including the National Blueprint Office, will convene to show their support and commitment to the program.

The event will be held at the National Building Museum, 401 F Street NW, in Washington, DC, beginning at 10:00 AM on September 25th.

The program will recognize community planning and development that improves the quality of life for older adults in U.S. counties, cities, and towns, including Native American communities. The Smart Growth component addresses such factors as density, design, walkability, housing, and transportation in community design.

Active Aging programs call attention to the need for seniors to regularly participate in a variety of structured and unstructured physical activities. Communities can promote active aging by implementing a diverse selection of accessible physical activity programs, and by helping to make self-directed physical activity opportunities for those 60+ more accessible.

While details of the recognition program still are being developed, it is expected that communities and tribes participating in the program will be presented with documentation recognizing their efforts. The Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging website will post descriptions of each community’s achievements in this area. In addition, participating communities will be eligible to participate in a virtual learning network that will provide a forum for sharing lessons learned.

Program sponsors anticipate a major event each year to honor those communities achieving the highest levels of Smart Growth/Active Aging development.

The EPA’s Aging Initiative will spearhead this multi-agency effort, which was developed in partnership with the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Council on Aging’s Center for Healthy Aging, and the National Blueprint Office. Additionally, the Robert Johnson Foundation, through its Active for Life program, will support a Healthy Communities for Active Aging Learning Network for participating communities and Native American tribes.

More information can be obtained from participating organizations’ websites: EPA Smart Growth: www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/
Active Aging: the National Council on Aging, www.ncoa.org
National Blueprint, www.aginblueprint.org
Information on the EPA Aging Initiative is at: www.epa.gov/aging
Queries can be sent to: aging.info@epa.gov