Are Elders the new hope?

Discussion
1

Recently I was in a conversation with an Elder in community.

She described the projects she and her partner were engaged with - an off-grid home, a collective housing situation with other elders, a movement for sustainable inner goals - …and it struck me that although I live in community the level of commitment she presented is unreachable to me at present.

Here in Sweden I am seeing a number of communities where the Elders seem to be taking a leading role.

I’m wondering - could it be that Elders are our best new hope as drivers for developing post-growth communities?

For those Elders who have paid their dues to the growth system and are lucky enough to draw a liveable pension, might this provide a level of freedom in contrast to those of us still stuck in it?

This thought brings me hope when I get yet another side-gig to cover my bills, and put yet another plan to engage more in community on the backburner.

What do you think?

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There are a couple of obvious things that elders have: experience, and time. Time is a huge asset/resource, and so there is a lot of work elders can do in creating and sustaining community. Elders also are likely to remember a time when neighbourhoods were more community-oriented and when neighbours got together for parties, the kids played outside until it got dark without parents worrying about where they were etc. Those old-school neighbourhood situations are some of what people, myself included, imagine wanting in Community. I was fortunate enough to grow up in the '90s where, at least in my city, it was still like that. By the time my much-younger brother came along, those tight-knit neighbourhood days were over, his childhood was quite different than mine thusly.

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