Precarity & Aging — MIRA One Topic, Two Disciplines

The McMaster Institute for Research on Aging (MIRA) brings together experts from across disciplines to address topics in aging research. This seminar will explore aging in precarious conditions and how older adults navigate economic and social insecurities. How can we mitigate precarious trajectories in later life? What does it mean to challenge the notion that older adults are adequately provided for by the state? How can we better design the connections between housing supports and policymaking to make aging-in-community accessible to low-income older adults?

Michelle Wyndham West will discuss her work with low-income older adults’ and their experiences of aging, precariousness and housing instability/homelessness in Hamilton. These experiences were collected via multi-modal, arts-based touchpoints: photos, videos and written diaries, as well as interviews and community-based participant observation, illustrating how arts-based approaches provide openings for low-income older adults to communicate their housing pathways, needs and aspirations.

Courtney Kennedy will discuss community-based interventions in a clinical context, at the transition point from hospital to home, for older adults in precarious situations, as well as community initiatives and interventions that may prevent vulnerable older adults from entering precarious situations.

David Reycraft has served Dixon Hall’s diverse community for 15 years to create pathways to appropriate, safe and stable housing; he will be speaking about the unique challenges faced by seniors with long histories of homelessness.

Register here.