Ageing and the Rights of Older Women

President Lilian Grinberg has announced that the International Council of Jewish Women will be establishing a new ad-hoc committee on ageing.

The topics of ageing and the rights of older women were discussed at the ICJW Executive Meeting in Washington D.C. in November 2022. One of the many interesting speakers who addressed us was Silvia Perel-Levin, an independent consultant on ageing and the health and human rights of older persons. She is past chair of the NGO Committee on Ageing at the United Nations in Geneva and was introduced to ICJW by Mary Liling.

Silvia Perel-Levin

She cited as an example the World Health Organization’s Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities. Their latest report can be downloaded here.

The WHO initiative is part of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which seek to make the world a better place for everyone from now, 2022, till 2030. The SDG global strategy and action plan on ageing and health listed five key strategic objectives that are designed to improve the welfare of older people. These include helping cities and communities everywhere to become age-friendly, and to ensure that they are inclusive and equitable places that leave no one behind, especially the most vulnerable older people.

The WHO is urging communities to work together to make environments age-friendly, harnessing innovation and imagination from all sectors and all actors. The report includes examples from cities and communities around the world of initiatives that benefit older people in their everyday lives.

At ICJW we are excited to emulate this inspiring initiative, focusing on the rights of older women in communities around the world. Our initiative will be led by Judy Lear from the US, and members from around the world are invited to contact her via the ICJW office if they want to participate. ([email protected])

(Graphic from UN Women Advocacy Brief on Older Women: Inequality at the Intersection of Age and Gender.)