We are a small team of 5 partner organisations who successfully carried out our Dreamlike Neighbourhood project. One of the partner organisations, however, is a newcomer, namely, the very traditional 75-year-old Suisse organisation Geronotologie CH. We are adult educators, researchers, experts in the field of older adult education, gerontologists, media engineers, architects, all directly active in the field of old age. The project will be interdisciplinary given our disparate expertise, but we have something in common: the target group of older people with whom and for whom we work daily. Is this innovative? We do not know, but we can argue with certainty, that it is rare!

SEE U project was begun under snow

To begin with, we met in December in Vienna. We got acquainted with “City Challenge“, activities for young people in the programme “Healthy Districts” (nem. Gesunde Bezirke) of the Wiener Gesundheitsförderung. Within this activity queraum supports young people in their designing interactive and app based tours. It helps them choose interesting places and activities for their peers- an approach, which is also interesting for our current SEE U project, Furthermore, we walked through a town area and through a Christmas market (one of the six Christmas markets in this city), thus already putting ourselves in the shoes of our future older learners groups who will be exploring their neighbourhoods... digitally. We started reading professional and scientific articles and books (we have read them before) those in favour and those against digitalisation.

Today we are having our first online meeting...still gathering ideas, shaping the project to come, capitalizing on the knowledge of our own previous projects and practices and those existing in different countries.

Queraum, the coordinating Austrian research institution has prepared a draft of the (not many!) leading topics /questions to be answered while writing a draft of the Facts sheet, personalised by quotes provided by our groups of older people, concerning digitalisation of their activities, and living. We are now searching for images featuring our past project and activities, illustrations of active ageing.

Project applications are like laws. They must be abstract enough...

We consider this initial and future exchange of experiences, knowledge, and ideas essential for our work. A project in real life is different (or at least should be different) from what is written in application. Applications are like laws. They must be abstract enough to leave room for innovations arising because of common and individual endeavours. There should be enough room for partners to search and find their own ways while being concentrated on the needs of the target group, i.e., older people. Those who might be interested in digital exploration of their town area or village, for their own benefit and the benefit of the community. The interest in digitalisation may be there from the beginning or, more importantly, will be created and strengthened as the project goes on.

Projects are supposed to be innovative. So, what is innovative in See U project?

It is difficult to answer this question right now! As project progresses, we will know better. We know that we would like to capitalize on the knowledge gained in other innovative projects of ours. For the time being we know that we would like to encourage older people to use digital devices and applications while doing meaningful work. We would like our older learners (because they will be learners!) to feel safe and more connected in our networked society. People who are safe and connected to humanity are more resilient. Those who are more resilient are more engaged. They feel better and more included. Moreover, when it comes to action in community, to learning in community, they build empathy. Partners in the See U projectwill be investing time into creating a safe digital community where everybody will be able to ask legitimate questions where others will respond with honesty and kindness.

We know that we can create contents that stop the doom Internet scroll, foster curiosity and belonging to an age inclusive world

Older learners will suggest topics, real life topics and learning contents that will be engaging for them, that will capitalize on their knowledge and skills, or, in an innovative way, they will offer their knowledge, their working, learning and research methods to other older people and institutions preferably in smaller localities. Together with the recipients of their knowledge they will learn how to digitise the contents. I think this can be qualified as somehow innovative at least in our Slovenian context.

Partners

queraum. cultural and social research, Vienna, Austria

Letokruh, z.ú., Prague, Czech Republic

Slovenian Third Age University, Ljubljana, Slovenia

AGE Platform Europe,Brussels, Belgium

Gerontologie CH

Dr. Dušana Findeisen is an adult educator, co-founder of SlovenianThird Age University, Head of the Instiute for Research and Developement of Education, former assistant professor of andragogy at the Faculty of Arts of Ljubljana and former Age Platform Europe expert