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THE AGING SOCIETY, NATURAL RESOURCE UTILIZATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Citation:
BRADLEY, PATRICIA. THE AGING SOCIETY, NATURAL RESOURCE UTILIZATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY. Presented at Society of Human Ecology Conference, Salt Lake City, UT, October 13 - 26, 2005.
Description:
The U.S. is undergoing a dramatic demographic transformation toward older adults, spearheaded by the aging Baby Boomers, but projected to last beyond the Boomer generation. In August 2004, EPA held a workshop on (1) the change in aging demographics over time, (2) key issues (i.e., socio-economic, geographic) affecting demographic projections, (3) the potential impacts of an aging population on natural resources and environmental quality and (4) the research needed to ensure both the desired amenities for this aging population and the protection of natural resources. A diverse group of individuals, including human demographers, physicians and health officials, ecologists, risk assessors, private sector developers, consultants, and representatives from tribes and NGOs attended this workshop in August 2004. Two key findings from the workshop will significantly change the way ORD research is conducted: 1) the need to develop and foster new partnerships among local, state and federal agencies; the private sector; NGOs; and stakeholders in all future research and management programs; and 2) that ecological research should be interdisciplinary and include not just natural scientists, ecologists and engineers, but also sociologists, economists, gerontologists, demographers, behaviorists, planners, social marketers and other disciplinary specialists that deal with aging populations that have traditionally not be involved in ecological research projects. I will present the results of the workshop, and the ORD research proposal that resulted from the workshop.