Kūpuna Collective Partners to Reframe Aging

In public health, we work every day to create better community conditions where we live, learn, work, and play. One of the major wins of public health is that we get to live longer and healthier lives, thanks to initiatives to reduce the spread of disease, improve access to care, and address upstream community factors affecting our health. However, it is also the kuleana (responsibility) of public health to improve policies, systems, and environments (PSE) that support us all as we age–especially as we live longer lives than ever–while mitigating disparities in how different groups experience successful aging.

HIPHI is one of ten public health institutes and many other partners working collaboratively to build an age-friendly ecosystem, which describes how different parts of our society improve the health and quality of life for older adults through policy, practice, and communications. One significant barrier that stands in the way of an age-friendly ecosystem is ageism,* which shows up in the ways we speak about aging, the words we use to describe older adults, and the assumptions we make about kupuna (meaning “older adult,” in this context) abilities and contributions. Co-coordinated by HIPHI and the University of Hawaiʻi Center on Aging, the Kūpuna Collective recognizes the power of language in shaping perceptions and combating ageism and is actively working to reframe the stories we tell about aging and older adults in Hawaiʻi to drive PSE change. To kick off the new year, the Collective hosted the National Center to Reframe Aging at its January meeting to highlight proven strategies in effectively framing aging as a basis for supportive policies and programs for all of us as we age. Members also shared local knowledge and insight on how we can amplify the voices of kūpuna, challenge stereotypes that no longer serve us, and incorporate language that affirms the value of aging rooted in our local values and multicultural heritage. Too often, aging is framed as a period of decline rather than the culmination of life experience and wisdom. Using age-empowering language that celebrates longevity and the cultural richness that kūpuna bring to families and communities can change how we perceive aging and older adults and, ultimately, how we structure programs and policies to be anti-ageist. The cost of inaction is considerable; according to the World Health Organization, ageism is associated with earlier death, is linked with lower quality of life and social isolation, and has negative economic consequences that exacerbate other forms of disadvantage.

The University of Hawai‘i Center on Aging reports that about one in five (18.6%) of Hawaiʻiʻs population is 65 years or older, and it is expected that by 2040, this number will increase to make up nearly a quarter of the population (24%).  Hawaiʻi’s rapidly aging population presents a unique opportunity to significantly change the trajectory of kūpuna health, for both current and future kūpuna, through transformative PSE change rooted in age-empowering language. The Collective looks forward to spearheading this movement by building a community of local advocates committed to this work and coordinating reframing efforts as a basis for an age-empowered Hawaiʻi.

To learn more about the Collective, visit hiphi.org/kupuna.