As part of its campaign for a European Parliament attentive to the issue of age equality, and leveraging on the experience gained during the first edition of the Programme “Financial Support to AGE Members”, in 2024 five projects were granted to design and implement post-election projects liaising with elected Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to engage them durably on the promotion of age equality at EU level.
- Place: Poland
- Duration: 5 months
- Requested budget: 60.000EUR
“AGE = Europe for all ages”
Project from AGE Member, BonumVitae
BonumVitae’s project “AGE = Europe for all ages” focused on intergenerational interactions and on awareness raising, namely via:
- Video spot promoting age equality, produced as part of the #AgeismHurts media campaign, featuring well-known actors Jerzy Rogalski and Krystyna Szydłowska, winners of The Voice of Senior Poland.
- Two media campaigns promoting age equality targeted both older people and younger generations, utilizing Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, reaching over 100,000 people per month.
- Eight articles promoting age equality were published in press and online platforms dedicated to older people.
- A literary competition with prizes highlighted examples of stereotypical and exclusionary treatment of older people.
- Place: Cyprus
- Duration: 5,5 months
- Requested budget: 23.000 EUR
CTAO-The Cyprus Third Age Observatory’s project
Project from AGE Member, CTAO-The Cyprus Third Age Observatory
CTAO-The Cyprus Third Age Observatory’s project engaged in extensive discussions with influential figures in Cyprus, including the Cyprus President, and ministers, major political parties, mayors, and various stakeholders and policymakers. To support the proposal for a European Age Equality Strategy and the establishment of an Intergroup in the European Parliament focused on Ageing and Solidarity between Generations, CTAO successfully:
- Convinced 4 out of 6 Cypriot Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to back the proposed Intergroup.
- Interacted with nearly all national TV and radio stations, as well as newspapers, allowed to advocate for the human rights of older people, reaching households across Cyprus and engaging with society at large.
- Organized a high-level conference with influential institutional representatives in Cyprus and in Europe
- Implemented a communication campaign to disseminate the results.
- Place: Portugal
- Duration: 5,5 months
- Requested budget: 19.750EUR
“Sowing a future for all ages”
Project from AGE Member, APRe! – Aposentados, Pensionistas e Reformados
APRe!’s project “Sowing a future for all ages” successfully promoted the AGE Platform Europe Manifesto in Portugal and developed a strong advocacy campaign targeting Portuguese MEPs to support the ‘Europe for all Ages’ Intergroup. It resulted in the following achievements:
- Four discussion sessions were organized across Portuguese cities, engaging a significant number of participants and addressing key priorities for both APRe! and AGE.
- APRe! conducted meetings with five Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from three European political groups, with broad agreement on the Intergroup’s objectives. Two MEPs explicitly supported the initiative, and another committed to doing so. In November 2024, an APRe! delegation visited AGE headquarters and the European Parliament, engaging further with Portuguese MEPs.
- Additionally, a publication highlighting ageing realities in Portugal, aligned with the Manifesto’s themes, is nearing completion.
- Place: Greece
- Duration: 3 months
- Requested budget: 15.630EUR
“65+ Calling Europe”
Project from AGE Member, People Behind
People Behind’s “65+ Calling Europe” project was officially launched when a partnership with the Municipality of Agioi Anargyroi in the Attica region was set up. This collaboration enabled outreach to over 150 older people and the collection of more than 100 participation applications. People Behind namely:
- Updated educational materials on the rights of people aged 65+, aligned with EU principles
- Organized three workshops were held engaging a total of 82 participants, covering the history of human rights, European advancements for older people’s rights, and strategies to improve advocacy in Greece.
- Implemented a social media campaign to raise awareness about older people’s rights and encourage advocacy at national and European levels.
- Place: Czech Republic
- Duration: 5 months
- Requested budget: 15.279EUR
“Advocacy for Dynamic Ageing Policies”
Project from AGE Member, Zivot90
Zivot90’s “Advocacy for Dynamic Ageing Policies” implemented a series of workshops fostering collaboration with the Ministry of Social Affairs in Czech Republic, engaging with external professionals, and strengthening alliances with politicians, policymakers. In practice the project organized:
- A first workshop presenting Zivot’s vision for long-term care to employees, with a focus on de-institutionalization, featuring two external guest speakers.
- A second workshop with Czech Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), the representatives of Czech Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and experts to bridge European and Czech ageing policies, securing future cooperation with key partners.
- A third workshop addressing stereotypes on ageing and anti-discriminatory practices.
- The project also launched a senior self-advocacy group to enhance their voice in our organization, reinforcing our bottom-up approach to active ageing.
Across 5 projects, 62 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) engaged through meetings, workshops, and email communication. Six MEPs formally supported the Intergroup, with notable contributions from Polish, Portuguese, and Cypriot representatives.
The projects collectively reached over 350,000 people, leveraging media campaigns, events, and social media, with more than 600 older people participating directly in project activities.
All projects met the expected outcomes and impacts. We are very grateful to these AGE members for their commitment and support!
We take this opportunity to announce that the regranting scheme (financial support to AGE members) will be launched in 2025 to sustain approximately 5-6 projects underpinning AGE work on equality at national, European and International levels.
More information in a dedicated newsflash in January 2025!
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