Designing an Age Friendly Living Environment

KWOK Yan Chi, Jackie (Dr.)

The School of Design &Institute of Active Ageing

Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hong Kong entering into an ageing society

• In Hong Kong , it is projected that 22% of the total population will reach 60 years old or above, in the year 2030.

• Nowadays, the percentage of educated older persons is becoming significant.

• 20 years later, 63.6% of the elderly population will have received secondary education level or above.

• Thanks to continuing advances in medicine, people can generally look forward to better health and longer life expectancies.

• Older persons who are both better educated and healthier are likely to place greater importance on quality of life issues than the present cohort.

From Issues to Questions

• How to design a habitable living environment to cope with this significant demographic change?

• How to sustain a life with quality for the coming generation of older citizens?

• In 2002 and 2007, the WHO launched world wide campaigns to promote ‘active ageing’ and ‘age–friendly city’.

• Is it possible to apply such concept of age-friendly city to Hong Kong?.

Defining the urban space as living environment

• Theoretical definitions of ‘living environment’ --- for older urban dwellers

• 5 interrelated theories to organize the views on the urban space as living environment for older people.

Henri Lefebvre :Rights to the city

• All urban dwellers have the rights:

• to training and education, to work, to culture, to rest , to health ,and to housing.

• Following Lefebvre’s idea, we

• advocate the urban environment should be designed to offer appropriate private and

• public space with easy accessibility for older people.

Leys and de Rouck :Independent living

• Each individual has a right to independence that comes from exercising control over his or her life, based on an ability and opportunity to make choices in everyday activities.

• These activities may include participating in community life; fulfilling social roles such as marriage, parenthood, employment, and citizenship; sustaining self-determination; and minimizing physical or psychological dependence on others.

Kearns and Andrew: ‘post-medical geography of health’

• It is no longer sufficient to design a living environment for older people where only medical services are provided.

The sustainability of the physical and psychological health of the citizens is a board concern which involves serious consideration in a multidisciplinary context.

Norberg Schultz

• In a concrete space people continue to negotiate with existing ethical, social, economic and aesthetic orders to organize their life, to search for intimate relationships, and to acquire and defend individual and communal culture and values.

Active Ageing (WHO)

• Offering opportunities for health, participation and

security• Allowing people to realize their potential for physical,

social and mental well being throughout the life course• The word ‘active’ refers to continuing participation in

social, economic, cultural, spiritual and civic affairs• Those who are ill or live with disabilities can remain

active contributors to their families, peers, communities and nations

World Health Organization(2002). Active ageing: a Policy Framework.

Age-friendly (urban) living environment

• An age-friendly living environment : various factors, including biological, cognitive, psychological, behavioural, economic, social, and environmental, of older individuals are considered for their attainment of physical and psychosocial well-being (Bond, 2004; WHO, 2002).

• In short, an age-friendly living urban environment should be holistic, incorporating values, beliefs, interests, expectations, and needs of various aspects of older individuals.

Policy Address 2009-2010

Residential Care Services

(1) Increasing from 50% to 90% the proportion of nursing home

(2) Purchasing vacant places from self-financing nursing homes and care and attention homes;

(3) Making full use of the space in existing subsidized elderly homes to provide more places that offer continuous care.

Policy Address 2009-2010

Ageing in Place

• To provide additional subsidized day care places

• To improve the existing home care services

Policy Address 2009-2010

Active Ageing• To establish the Elder Academy Development

• To provide a one-stop information service through a new and dedicated Internet portal for the elderly

Elder Academy Development Foundation: 10 million

Vs

Hong Kong 2009 East Asian Games Opening Ceremony on the evening 5 Dec: 40 million

• The Government views that older people are leading a passive life in indoor space.

• Most policies are about offering supports to older citizens in an interior context.

From theory to (policy and) practice

• How does the city help the citizens to sustain an active life when they get old?

Why does getting outdoors matter?

• Supportive outdoors spaces, i.e. spaces that are easy for older people to use, contribute to a more active life-style and are correlated with older people’s life satisfaction and health

(Sugiyama & Ward Thompson, 2007)

•ADL: Home Environment•IADL: Home/ outdoor Environment•QoL: Outdoor environment

•The Activities of Daily Living (ADLs): movement in bed, transfers, locomotion, dressing,personal hygiene, and feeding.

Source: 大阪市立大学大学院生活科学研究科 X 大和ハウス工業総合技術研究所 2009

Activities outside home: enhancing the quality of life of older people

• Research on Elderly Oriented Living Environment 2002-2005

A research on the living environment with a holistic view: both home and outdoor environment

Research on Elderly Oriented Living Environment 2002-2005

(1) How do the older persons organize their life? What are their expectations and goals?

(2) In a city where the problem of ageing is becoming more and more serious, how are we going to prepare and plan the environment to cope with this social phenomenon?

Research process and findings

The research process was organised in four stages:

1 ） Questionnaire survey – evaluation on the older persons’ (aged 60 or above) capacities of activities in different environments

(2 ） Visualsimulation modelling workshop for designing ideal interior space;

(3) Visual simulation modelling workshop for designing ideal neighbourhood space.

(4) In -depth Interview with the active older persons

Visual Simulation Modelling Workshop for

Ideal Neighbourhood (outdoor) Space

Tools

Base board: concentric circles representing walking distance from 5 minutes to 20 minutes

Components representing different facilities

Visual Simulation Modelling Workshop for Ideal Neighbourhood Space

1. Participants discussing on the relationship between their individual life and the community with the facilitators.

2. Participants selecting preferred components for constructing the ideal nieghbourhood space.

Visual Simulation Modelling Workshop for Ideal Neighbourhood Space

3. Facilitators guiding and encouraging the participants to design their ideal nieghbourhood space.

4. A group of participants with their design.

Home block

Visual Simulation Modelling Workshop for Ideal Neighbourhood Space

5. A finished model Home block

Summary of Preferences of Neighbourhood Space

• The major preferences of the informants matched with to the 3 typical ‘types of engagement with outdoor environments’ (I'DGO - Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors; Sugiyama & Ward Thompson, 2005) :

• 1. undertake physical exercise• 2. contact with nature• 3. sustain the social network

Preferred setting at the proximity of the home block

• The adjacent environment around the home block should be tranquil.

• Lawn with seating facilities around the home block.

• Shops providing daily life necessities nearby the home block.

• Covered walkways for connecting their homes to the places mentioned.

Within the 5 minutes walking distance

• Community centre and medical clinics

Community centre should be found within the 5 minutes walking distance from home.

Within 10 minutes of walking from the home block

Shopping and leisure space• Older persons liked

traditional street market.

• They think that street market (with stores and hawker booths) would offer richer choice of products while the price would be cheaper than supermarkets and shopping mall type shops.

A market street with a small park in the proximity was regarded as a convenient gathering place to meet friends and neighbours.

Within 15 minutes of walking distance from home block

• Cultural and recreational facilities

Park, community centre, community hall and library were the preferences of the participants.

universal design

• The participants thought that universal design should be implemented when planning the cultural and recreational space and facilities.

Community Life

• Most participants intentionally planned the elderly home, elderly centre, library, schools, kindergarten, community hall, children and youth centre in one cluster.

• This showed that the participants wished to live happily among other people in a community.

Research Conclusion

• A schema explaining the guidelines for design a good living environment for older persons. The schema consists of 60 interrelated concepts.

1 Main entrance and Lobby 31 Hooks near window

2 Vertical linkage 32 Access and circulation

3 Corridor 33 Railing

4 Concept of a complete home environment 34 Rooftop and podium

5 Entrance to individual unit 35 Balcony

6 Identification of individual's apartment 36 Shape and size of balcony

7 Sitting place 37 Balustrade

8 Common area 38 Lighting

9 Living / Dining area 39 Emergence bell / alarm at mid and low level

10 Kitchen 40 Switches and sockets

11 Toilet and Bathroom 41 Entertainment device

12 Wet floor shower system 42 Religious objects

13 Shower with seat 43 Artworks and souvenirs items

14 Lever tap and toilet flushing 44 Ease-of-use factor

15 Ventilation and heating 45 Neighbourhood environment

16 Sleeping area 46 Activities nodes

17 Bed 47 Strolling place

18 Bedding 48 Small parks

19 Bedside lamp and low level lighting 49 Large open space/District park

20 Location of bed 50 Building edges

21 Storage 51 “Face” and “back” of buildings

22 On the wall 52 Roads

23 Open shelves and surfaces 53 Streets/Pedestrian zone

24 Daily necessities 54 Circulation route and seating spot

25 Window 55 Pedestrian facilities

26 Location of window 56 Outdoor lighting

27 Ventilation 57 Greenery and micro-climate

28 View 58 Linkages from interior to exterior

29 Planter 59 Neighbourhood environment planning

30 Laundry – from washing to drying 60 Management, designers and users

Design Suggestions for Age Friendly Neighbourhood Environment

Neighbourhood environment

• Well designed neighbourhood environment respecting and supporting the everyday life patterns of the older people

Neighbourhood environment design

• Neighbourhood designshould aim at community building

Activities Nodes

Integration of different types of places and activities to enrich the urban life

Strolling Place

Lively activities nodes and strolling places should be Inter-related

Small Parks

•Different kinds of shops surround the small parkWell-balance between the “openness” and “closeness”of the space of the park

Seats

Different types of seats for different areas arranged in good system

Greenery and Micro-climate

Provides physical and psychological comfort.

Pathways

To facilitate personal mobility and safety for pedestrians with disabilities and older persons

Source: www.wretch.cc/blog/barrierfree/14368294

Yokohama Motomachi

Streets/Pedestrian zone

• Should be vehicle-free with various facilities for social activities

Pedestrian Walkway

Shops

Architecture

Activities centre: Human beings , activities , noise, visually attractive display of things

Human Scale Streets

Facilities for Pedestrians e.g. Shading for Sunshine/Rainfall, free seating

Market and Shops

Ideal design : Board pedestrian walkway, sufficient pedestrian facilities , free seating , a good strolling place

offering gathering opportunities to meet friends

Buildings

Shops

Pedestrian zone

A compact and lively neighbourhood setting in Yuen Long (source Ms L.Fung)

The private elderly home

Research on Lifestyles of Active Older Persons 2007-2009

2009

Life Course Theory Desires for Continuity

Active Ageing

•Life is a continuous process

•Ageing occurs from birth to death

•Older people make adjustments to changes

•One trends to sustain the continuity of identity and life experience

•Older people should be empowered

•To optimize opportunity for health participation and security

Age Friendly City •Recognizing the capacities and resources among older people •Responding to ageing-related needs and preferences •Respecting decisions and choices of older people

The quest for

Life Space

and

Quality of Life

Research Details

• May 2007 - Feb 2009

• We have conducted interviews with 50 older persons

• 5 older persons could not meet the requirements :

(1) age 60 or above (2)active and in good physical condition (3) possess Junior high school level

Significant Findings

• Staying Active• All of the informants stayed active and incorporated a

great variety of activities into their everyday lives. • They all went out every day and took part in different

activities outside the home; for all informants, the average time spent outside home was 9.5 hours (weekday) and 11.5 hours (weekend).

• Most of the informants got up early in the morning (around 6-7 am); they usually carried out activities outside the home during the daytime and were back home before dinner.

Life pattern of an informant (weekday and weekend)

Healthy Informants are highly mobile

• All informants undertook cross–district activities nearly every day.

• Apart from walking, the informants employed diverse forms of transportation to get around, including bus, railway, private vehicle, mini-bus, tram, ferry and taxi.

• They loved to travel, and most traveled regularly. the preferred destination: Mainland China, overseas .

• Many informants also regularly joined local tours.

Places an informant goes

Findings

The informants reveal the need of:

• Better Health care services

• Continuous education and opportunities for ‘cultivation’

• More possibilities of social participation in all

aspects (including opportunity for work)

• Analysis

3-B Model analysis • This model serves as a means of

understanding how community factors influence health and well-being.

• In 3-B model, quality of life is defined as “the degree to which a person enjoys the important possibilities of his or her life in three areas”*.

*References :Raphaela, Dennis., Renwickb, Rebecca., Brownb, Ivan., Steinmetz, Brenda., Sehdevc, Hersh., Phillips, Sherry.,(2001) ‘Making the links between community structure and individual well-being: community quality of life in Riverdale, Toronto, Canada’ ,Health & Place 7 ,pp.179–196

3-B model (1) The area of Being reflects :‘‘who one is’’ and has physical,

psychological, and spiritual components.

(2)The area of Belonging is concerned with the fit between a person and his or her physical, social, and community environments.

(3) The area of Becoming refers to the activities that a person carries

out to achieve personal goals, hopes, or aspirations. Becoming involves practical or day-to-day activities, leisure pastimes, and those activities that help one to cope and grow.

References :Raphaela, Dennis., Renwickb, Rebecca., Brownb, Ivan., Steinmetz, Brenda., Sehdevc, Hersh., Phillips, Sherry., (2001)‘Making the links between community structure and individual well-being: community quality of life in Riverdale, Toronto, Canada’ ,Health & Place 7 , pp.179–196

Becoming

• Older people remain enthusiastic about ‘self-development’ and have expectations for a better future.

• From our analysis, we remark that, if older people have the advantages of good health and financial stability, they will continue to strive for a life with quality as they age.

• Aging people are not retiring nor withdrawing from the society: they are redefining their life (work careers, learning new skills, developing new leisure pursuits, enrolling in educational courses and volunteering for social causes).

• (The Johnson County Consortium on Successful Aging 2006)

Aging People: adding life to their years rather than just adding years to their lives.

• Old citizens should be encouraged to work, and to ‘exercise, have sex , take holidays, socialize in ways indistinguishable those of their children’s generation’ (Blaikie1999: 104)

Philosopher Lao Sze Kwang aged 82 Athlete Mr. Yip aged 87

Conclusion

Comprehensive schema to plan an ‘Age Friendly City’

• Going outside home is more than: undertaking physical exercise, contacting with nature, sustaining the social network

• Comprehensive schema to plan an ‘Age Friendly City’

Spiritual devotion

References .

• Baars, Jan.(ed) (2006) Aging, globalization, and inequality : the new critical gerontology. Amityville, N.Y. : Baywood Pub. • Blaikie, A. (1999). Ageing and popular culture. UK : Cambridge University Press.• Bond, John . & Corner, Lynne. (2004). Quality of life and older people. Maidenhead: Open University Press. • Boulton-Lewis, G. M., Buys,.Laurie.& Lovie-Kitchin,Jan. (2006). ‘Learning and Active Ageing’ in Educational Gerontology, 32: 273.• Estes, Carroll L., Biggs, Simon, and Phillipson, Chris.(2003). Social theory, social policy and ageing : a critical introduction . Maidenhead :

Open University Press . • I’DGO, (2007). Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors:How does the outdoor environment affect older people’s quality of life?

(http://www.idgo.ac.uk/older_people_outdoors/outdoor_environment_qol.htm)• May, Tim. (2001). Social research: issues, methods and process. Buckingham ; Phildelphia, Pa. : Open University • Lefebvre, H.(1996).Writings on cities. Blackwell, Cambridge, MA.• Leys and de Rouck(2005) Active ageing and independent living services: Core propositions leading to a conceptual framework. (

http://is.irc.es/pages/EAP/iLs.html )• Norberg-Schultz, C.(1980).Genius loci : towards a phenomenology of architecture. New York : Rizzoli • Phillips, David. (2006).Quality of life: concept, policy and practice. London; New York: Routledge• Raphaela, Dennis., Renwickb, Rebecca., Brownb, Ivan., Steinmetz, Brenda., Sehdevc, Hersh., Phillips, Sherry., (2001)‘Making the links

between community structure and individual well-being: community quality of life in Riverdale, Toronto, Canada’ ,Health & Place 7 ,pp.179–196.

• Sugiyama, T & Ward Thompson, C. (2007). ‘Outdoor environments, activity and the well-being of older people: conceptualising environmental support’ Environment and Planning A, vol. 39, pp.1943 - 1960

• Walker, Alan. (2002). ‘A strategy for active ageing’ in International Social Security Review, Vol. 55, 1/2002:121-139.• WHO (2002) .Active ageing: A policy framework. WHO/NMH/NPH/02.8. Geneva: World Health Organization.• WHO (2007) Global Age-friendly Cities: A Guide. Geneva: World Health Organization.• 大阪市立大学大学院生活科学研究科 X 大和ハウス工業総合技術研究所 .( 2009). エイジング . イン . プレイス超高齢社会の居住デザイン .

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