We wanted to achieve the following: -10 specialists working with the elderly from the 2 communities involved in the project, to acquire knowledge of personal development and improved their social skills, during a period of 18 months - to foster basic digital knowledge for elderly people -to develop social and integrate abilities of that 10 specialists in order to better help elderly people to be safe from exclusion and discrimination - to consolidate the capacity of the organizations with training personnel on the urgently to be addressed topic -to make a handbook addressed to those who work with older people, as a guide to acquiring necessary skills in supporting older people to develop the necessary skills to fight against discrimination and to adapt, learn and live a healthy and fulfilling life -training 10 participants, 5 from each partner organization, in order to develop their social skills, through theoretical and practical activities, to facilitate the adoption by the elderly of a positive attitude towards aging and towards continuous learning -to develop an interactive online course for elderly people on the understanding of active ageing and the basic digital knowledge (internet banking, online shopping for necessities).
According to statistics, our society is aging at an accelerated rate. In Romania, 65+ people are 19.5% of total of population (2021 Population and Housing Census - RPL2021) and in Italy, between 2002 and 2019, the population over 65 years increased by 3.1 million and more 1.8 million of them are over 80 years (Annual Report – 2020. The state of the Nation Istat - Istituto Nazionale di Statistica). This population is the most exposed to exclusion and discrimination. Consequently, projects developed in the field of active aging and continuous learning, involving the training of specialists working with older people, as well as the elderly people, are not only welcome, but especially necessary. Those type of projects aim to increase a significant part of society to gain new social and digital skills, build confidence, resilience and, if possible, contribute to the economy and society. Lifelong learning (investment in acquisition of knowledge, skills and competences) is part of the response to the challenges of ageing.