[KJW #100] WEL Begins The New Year 2008 Nurturing Strong Global Partnerships, Extending Our Services In Spanish To Venezuela, Colombia and Chile.

WEL, World Elder Land continues promoting global meaningful partnerships, civic engagement, better living arrangements, resources, "whole-person-centered wellness©" programs and healing for our elders... WEL believes in the active participation of our elders to influence the design and implementation of better practices, policies and programs that affect them directly.

Participation and empowerment of older persons, a meaningful and efficient way of co-creating betterment for our elders.

As older persons continue to constitute an ever-greater proportion of the total population, they have the potential to be more influential in society. Empowerment and civic engagement vary greatly across countries, for example, there are countries where older people carry great social and political weight, mostly associated with the important concentration of economic resources and a tradition of political participation; in many countries however, older people are not organized and experience great difficulty in voicing their concerns and incorporating them in the public debate and the policy agenda.

WEL continues promoting efforts to organize and facilitate the inclusion of our elders in their own betterment. Solitary living, which may result in increase isolation, makes care-giving by family members more difficult to arrange; it also increases the need for additional support services so as to enable older persons to remain in their own home. Developing countries may have difficulty providing such services. (World Economic and Social Survey 2007). WEL continues promoting civic engagement and education facilitating meaningful "Clinical Therapeutic Recreation©" services that can be implemented by each elder, at home and at a community level nurturing a better and healthier quality of life for everyone.

Living arrangements of older persons (aged 60 years or over) in Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean.

In developing countries, the large majority of elders live with their adult children. In Africa, Asia and Latin American and the Caribbean, the proportion is two thirds. Solitary living in developing countries is particularly problematic because of the generally limited social support programmes and networks. (World Economic and Social Survey 2007, United Nations). In Latin America and the Caribbean region, only 1 to 2 per cent of older persons live in institutional care facilities. (Pelaez, 2006).

Aging is not the major factor that is rising health care cost, our daily lifestyle choices are what mirror the way we aged. We can better and influence the way we aged.

In Canada, the use of high-tech medical treatments and new drugs is a reason for high expenditures on older persons. The high cost of health care are partly a result of the use of an extended period of time owing to chronic illness (Mathiason, 2003).

Improvements implementing a culture of process-improvement in the areas of:

• nutrition
• literacy
• sanitation
• integrated medicine
• mindful health care services
• community integration
  
• financial independence, and
• meaningful social support networks
  

can co-create and influence better longevity, economic growth, social development, overal productive growth, migration and more...

KJW meeting with elders from Latin American countries about the implementation of whole-person-centered wellness self-care programs.

Each person can engage totally in their whole-person-centered wellness planning, implementation and evaluation process of betterment. Individuals, communities, governments and the international community can focus their ATTENTION, INTENTION and BETTER RESOURCES into nurturing meaningful partnerships, the development of societies for all ages and betterment for our elders into the global agenda in 2008.

We have each other, we can always do better... Everyone is invited, together we can nurture a paradise of Earth... WEL, World Elder Land for our elders and their caregivers.

Puerto Rico: Collaborative Major Study Of Older Puerto Rican Health Conditions

China: Beauty Contest Held For Our Elders

Chile: Government Initiatives in Support of Older Chileans

El Salvador: A Month of Festivals for the 50

References:
- Development in an Ageing World, United Nations 2007
- Pan American Health Organization. (1998) Health in the Americas
- World Economic and Social Survey, United Nations 2007
- United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America
and the Caribbean (ECLAC)

Please send inquiries, requests for programs, speaker and consulting services with WEL, World Elder Land or Kathy J. Ward to connection@kathyjward.com