Europe is facing a “longevity revolution”, as the number of very old people will increase in the coming decades: In 2060 every 8th person will be at the age of 80 and above. Although there is an increasing number of very old people, who are motivated to take on an active role in society and contribute to their communities, their talents and views are often overlooked and under-appreciated. Whereas former projects mainly addressed and reached either "young olds" or very old people with higher education, who are used to participate and bring in their voices and views, the (in)VISIBLE TALENTS project gives clear preference to older people with low formal education (e.g. older migrants, refugees, women, who have never been employed). As experience show, they are less likely to participate in activities that require much pro-active involvement. The (in)VISIBLE TALENTS low-threshold approach, therefore, supports this difficult-to-reach target group to experience learning, participation and recognition. We are convinced that it is not always about inventing something new or developing common learning and participation opportunities for older people, We are convinced that is not always about inventing something new or developing common learning and participation opportunities for older people, sometimes it just needs an awareness raising “little push” and supporting structures at organizational level to make valuable talents visible and promote contributions of very old people to their communities. The overall objective of (in)VISIBLE TALENTS project is, therefore, to support health and social service organisations in residential (residential homes, day-care centers, hospitals) and community settings (neighbourhoods, districts) to become “Competencies valuing organizations” and support their target groups to (re-)detect their talents and make their valuable contributions to their communities visible. Up to 25 Organisations in five partner countries (Austria, Germany, Italy, Lithuania and the Netherlands) are accompanied in self-assessing participation possibilities in their settings and realise concrete measures to promote the active participation of very old people and visibility of their contributions. Cautiously estimated 8-10 very old people per organisations will be involved in these activities. That means, in total up to 250 people will directly benefit from the (in)VISIBILITY Talents project. (in)VISIBLE TALENTS will be implemented through the following steps: Based on an EU RESEARCH on the issue of active participation in very old age and innovative initiatives at organisational level in all partner countries and at EU, information on the project and photo material showing a diverse and positive picture of very old people and their contributions a Factsheet (in)VISIBLE TALENTS is elaborated. ELABORATING & TESTING the strategy of becoming “competencies valuing organisations”: Based on a self-assessment questionnaire and accompanying measures organisations in residential and community settings – in close cooperation with staff, volunteers and representatives of the target groups – are supported to self-assess participation possibilities of very old people in their institution. Furthermore, concrete activities are realised to promote the active participation of very old people and the visibility of their contributions. ELABORATING & PRODUCTION OF TOOLS & PUBLICATIONS: Organisations not directly involved in the project obtain low-threshold and non-committal information in the Brochure “Everybody has something to give”. The Online-Tool is an excellent basis for organisations and persons working with older people to self-assess their habits and possibilities in valuing the competencies of very old people and improve the situation. E-PRESENTATION & LEARNING MATERIAL enables people interested in the issue to join a virtual tour through the project and its results. The partnership offers a target-group tailored and high quality tool, which can be used – also after the official lifetime of the project – in different settings and for various target groups. Keeping horizontal & specific priorities in mind, (in)VISIBLE TALENTS supports the social inclusion and learning of the oldest generation, staff and volunteers in the field of health and social care, all groups considered as low-skilled and disadvantaged learners. When developing tools how to support older people in developing their talents and nudge contributions to their communities, also digital technologies for different target groups are considered (Online-Tool, E-learning material). Due to the high proportion on women working and living in the involved settings, the project also contributes to reduce gender differences in relation to ICT. Furthermore, based on experiences gained in former projects, the partnership puts special emphasis on the setting approach, resource-orientation and transferability.
Context & Objectives invisible talents is based on the observation that older and especially very old people tend to become invisible in our society. They have left the workforce, they are less present on our streets, they have almost vanished from the media. The older a person gets the more he/she is less likely to be regarded as someone who has something to give and to participate meaningfully. In contrast to that, we think that everybody has something to give. Older and very old people carry with them a treasure of memories, experiences, knowledge and competencies (‘talents’). We believe that giving older people the opportunity to (re-)discover and contribute all the experience, knowledge and talents they have acquired in their long lives – as men and women with families, friends, paid and voluntary work, studies, hobbies and passions – not only makes our society richer and more colorful but also combats negative stereotyping and ageism. Given this background, the main idea of our project was to make the talents of older and very old people – in communities and organisations – (more) visible and to enhance their social participation. We supported older people and organisations working directly with older and very old people to: • self-reflect the status quo of participation and engagement opportunities in their organisation. • develop concrete activities that promote the engagement of older people and make their talents visible. Activities To achieve these objectives, partners in five EU countries realised reflection workshops and meetings with 27 organizations in residential and community settings. In cooperation with organisations activities to boost the visibility and estimation of older men and women have been developed. When we worked with organisations, it was very important both for us and them to stress the fact that making talents visible does not require huge sums of money and other resources or major organisational transformations. Interventions in partner countries involved activities that • make older people think about their interests and talents (e.g. Dream Factory meetings, workshops), • stimulate the reflection of stakeholders, staff and citizens (e.g. workshops, events) • make talents visible to many (e.g. videos, booklets, portrays of older people, newspaper articles) and • support organisations in needs-based planning. Detailed information on the invisible talents approach and activities implemented are summarized in the Brochure “Everybody has something to give”. Furthermore, an E-Presentation provides background information, inspirational examples and practical tools to increase the visibility of older people’s talents in their communities and in organisations. The invisible talents team has also developed an Online Self-Reflection Tool – a quick, free and anonymous online test that provides organisations with the possibility to see in a few minutes how they are doing with regard to the participation of older people and to start a reflection process about possible ways to improve this participation. A choice of the methods applied with the organisations and older people in the self-reflection processes, e.g. in workshops, can be found in the Toolbox. These tools inspire to fight ageism, (re-)discover wishes and interests and take a step towards the increased visibility of older men and women. Translations of all outcomes in the national languages of the five partners are accessible on the invisible talents website: www.invisible-talents.eu. Partners invisible talents was implemented by partners working in the fields of social policy and research, socialgerontology and adult education in Austria (queraum. cultural and social research), Germany (ISIS Sozialforschung · Sozialberatung · Politikberatung ), Italy (Lunaria), Lithuania (Vytautas Magnus University Kaunas) and the Netherlands (Stichting Bij de Tijd). Results & impact In total 200 professionals, such as social workers, professional carers, professionals working with older volunteers, representatives of communities, stakeholders and 127 older people participated in our reflection workshops and meetings. In cooperation with organisations in total 23 activities have been realised, involving 129 staff members, 10 students and 670 older and very old people. Furthermore, 134 older people, experts and practitioners have been involved in interviews and national multiplier events. That means, in total up to 1270 people directly benefited from the invisible talents project. Furthermore, a high number of stakeholders were involved in our dissemination activities. On EU level, due to cooperation with AGE Platform Europe, governmental organizations, policy makers and interest groups have been regularly informed on the project and outcomes. Sustainability is guaranteed as (cooperation-) partners are motivated to contniue their activities and stand up for the social participation and visibility of older people.