RESOURCES
LIVE
College towns are crushing it - “Growing entrepreneurial ecosystem is relatively new for college towns, which historically haven't given much thought to economic development.”
College linked retirement communities - List and description by State, with links.
Smart Living 360 - Model website for AA 55+
The Coming Exodus of Older Homeowners -. “Between 2016 and 2026, cohorts (reaching 65 or older) are projected to lose 10.5 million to 11.9 million homeowners, depending on the projection scenario.”
10 Minute Lifestyle - David Fox’s website of curated videos on New Urbanism.
Mass Timber construction vastly reduces carbon emissions, creates cleaner, quieter, and safer building sites, and improves the aesthetics of interiors.
Passive House standards save +/- 80% the of energy needed to heat and cool a structure.
GIVE
Cycling Without Age - Organization dedicated to giving nursing home residents rickshaw rides.
Experience Corps - “Has nearly 2,000 highly-trained volunteers working in more than 20 cities and serves over 30,000 students every year in high-need elementary schools.”
Generations United - Mission: “to improve the lives of children, youth, and older people through intergenerational collaboration, public policies, and programs for the enduring benefit of all.” Good example of local organization.
CoGenerate - Second acts for the greater good. “The decades of life beyond 50 become a time of social contribution and impact — and we leave the world better than we found it.”
Hourglass - “All successful complex adaptive coalitions have some kind of college or university in their town. Gray told me he once remarked to F&M’s president, “You want to make Lancaster a place where students want to come and I want to make it a place where graduates want to stay.”” Thomas Friedman
PLAY
Northampton, MA - Smith College, plus U. Mass and Amherst, Mount Holyoke, and Hampshire Colleges nearby
Known as an academic, artistic, musical, and cultural hub.
The vibrant Five College Learning in Retirement is open to all.
“More types of food than countries you’ve visited.” Northampton.live.
The Paradise District is brimming with galleries, music stores, artisans shops, antique stores, concert halls, diverse restaurants, cultural organizations, and institutions, including the renowned Smith College Museum of Art and the Academy of Music.
Over 200 miles of bike and hiking trails existing or proposed.
The Connecticut River, on the City’s eastern edge, provides opportunities for boating and bird-watching.
Middletown, CT - Wesleyan University
Over 60 restaurants within walking distance of our selected site.
Screenings: The University's Film Studies program, ranked 7th among the 25 best programs in the world.
Theater: Wesleyan's highly regarded theater program makes use of two theater facilities: the Theater in the Center for the Arts, a 400-seat space, and the '92 Theater.