Presentations and bios Longevity: Social Implications

Ana Sepúlveda, Judite GONÇALVES, Maria João Valente Rosa

3 JUN, 16:00

Ana Sepúlveda
Social and economic dimensions of longevity

Disruptive demographics is a way of looking at the new demographic reality, unique in the history of humanity and affecting all of the world’s populations. Scientific and technological advances are enabling us to live longer. The impact of disruptive demographics is tremendous and even those of us who are dealing on a daily basis with the impact of demographics on society know that we are not yet seeing the whole scenario, or that, in other words, we are only looking at the tip of the iceberg. An iceberg that, for some people, represents only negative aspects, with the so-called “grey plague”, a dark cloud that is descending upon countries. There is, however, another side, which is that of the business opportunities that this situation provides. Longevity therefore has distinct dimensions, and here I intend to focus especially on the economic dimension of longevity, or, in other words, the so-called demographic longevity, looking specifically at what it is, what opportunities it generates and what has been done by the world’s leading countries and by the European Union to promote the growth of the economics of longevity.

Ana João Sepúlveda is a consultant in the areas of the Economics of Longevity and Sustained Aging. With more than 17 years’ experience in marketing and market studies, she has been studying the effects of the longevity of populations on society and the economy for more than twelve years. She is a graduate in Sociology from Lisbon NOVA University, with a Master’s Degree in North American Cultural Studies from Universidade Aberta, and a Master’s Degree in Innovation and Cool Hunting from the Escola Superior de Comunicação Social. She is currently the President of Age Friendly Portugal and Ambassador of the Aging 2.0 international network, a member of the Covenant on Demographic Change, the Portuguese Network of Smart, Healthy and Age-Friendly Environments, and a member of the board of directors of the Associação Cidadania Social. She has published the following books: Marketing Político na Internet, Editora Centro Atlântico (2000) and Marketing para os 45+. Um mercado em expansão, in co-authorship with Luís Rasquilha, Editora Atual (2011).

Judite Gonçalves
Social and economic dimensions of longevity

From an individual point of view, when we think about the increase in longevity, it is easy to see it as something good: living longer is, in principle, a good thing. However, if we adopt a more integrated perspective, we more easily find ourselves thinking about the sustainability of our health and pension systems, or even about economic growth. We probably also find ourselves thinking about “more social” dimensions: what can we do to make people age in a more active and healthy way? How can we guarantee their quality of life? If the increase in longevity confronts us with these and other sorts of challenges, it also brings us opportunities. The value of experience. The possibility of continuing to involve individuals in economic and social activities, thanks to new technologies and the greater human capital of the “new older generations”. The mass market that is represented by the older population. All of this together, the so-called “economics of longevity”, already represents almost half of the American gross domestic product, according to a recent estimate of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). The question that arises is: how can we take advantage of these opportunities to respond to the challenges of increased longevity?

Judite Gonçalves is a guest assistant professor at the Faculty of Economics of Lisbon NOVA University, where she lectures in Health Economics and Statistics. She took a PhD at the University of Geneva, in Switzerland, with a thesis on the homecare policy in that country. Since then, and on her return to Portugal, her research has been directed towards various themes in the areas of Health Economics and the Economics of Aging, leading her to become interested in questions linked to the measurement of (good) aging, loneliness, and the design of a long-term care system, among others.

Maria João Valente Rosa
Demographic ageing: times of change

Demographic aging, the result of positive conquests about life and death, is an unavoidable evolution of the population, at least in the medium term. This trend has, however, become associated with a certain social discomfort. Part of this discomfort comes from false ideas, such as: aging is a disease; or a person’s chronological age is the best way of assessing their value. The other part of this discomfort results from society’s inability to adapt to the changes in its population’s age configuration, perpetuating principles inherited from a past that no longer has anything to do with these new times, as is the case with the prevailing model for the organisation of the life cycle, divided into three phases each identified by different age criteria: childhood phase; working phase; retirement phase. There are ever more people reaching advanced and very advanced ages. This may represent an excellent bonus for modern societies, provided that the amount of time added to life is accompanied by an extended quality in the contents of this extra time that is lived.

Lecturer at the Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of Lisbon NOVA University. PhD in Sociology (speciality: Demographics). She held several public offices at the Ministries of Education and Science between 2000 and 2009, and, from 2009 to 2019, was the director of Pordata — the Database of Contemporary Portugal, a project organised and developed by the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation. She is a member of the Higher Statistical Council (CSE), with a recognised reputation of scientific merit and independence. She is vice-president of the European Statistical Advisory Committee (ESAC) and a member of its Executive Board as a coordinator of the network of statistics users. She is a researcher at the Portuguese Institute for International Relations of Lisbon NOVA University, and is the author and co-author of numerous studies on contemporary Portuguese society. Her most recent publications in the area of aging include: “Envelhecimento demográfico: síntese do panorama em Portugal”, in Desafios demográficos: o envelhecimento. Conselho Económico e Social, ed. Almedina, 2019; “Demografia de Portugal até 2030”, in Cadernos de Economia No. 127. Polimeios e Ordem dos Economistas Portugueses, Abril/Junho, 2019; “O enorme desafio do envelhecimento demográfico”, in Cadernos de Economia No. 122. Polimeios e Ordem dos Economistas Portugueses, Janeiro/Março, 2018; “Envelhecimento demográfico e desenvolvimento social”, in Ética Aplicada: Proteção Social. Edições 70, 2017, pp. 299-319; Os Reformados e os Tempos Livres, Inatel/Formedia, 2015; O Envelhecimento da Sociedade Portuguesa, a collection of essays published by the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation, 2012. Her latest book, An ageless time: an essay on populatiomn ageing (edition Tinta da China) was launched in March 2020. Her latest book, An ageless time: an essay on population ageing (edition Tinta da China) was launched in March 2020.

Presentation and bio Longevity: Healthy Aging

Asghar Zaidi

3 JUN, 18:30

Why is it important to understand the links between social, behavioural and environmental factors in order to assess how aging societies experience a healthy aging process? How do the transitions of the course of life, influenced by social, behavioural and environmental factors result in cumulative vulnerabilities and/or resilience in old age? How are these vulnerabilities linked to the quality of life and well-being of old people? How do they vary between countries? And what are the policy and monitoring instruments that can help to increase the welfare of people when they act in different contexts, and how can these instruments be improved?

These are the questions underlying the lecture to be given by Asghar Zaidi, Vice Chancellor at Government College University, and a senior research fellow at Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, UK. Previously, he was Professor of Social Gerontology at Seoul National University, South Korea, and a Visiting Professor at London School of Economics and Political Science. He will look at both the global north and south, highlighting policies and programmes of success in this area of healthy aging.