The upcoming Policy Lab, scheduled on June 26th from 9:30 to 12:30 (CET), will address a central question for European societies: how housing and long‑term care policies can sustain active ageing, independent living, and the rights‑based protagonism of older people. The discussion will revolve around inclusive and enabling service models that recognise older adults as full actors in the design of their living environments and in the governance of the support systems that accompany them.
Testimonies from different countries and policy settings will illustrate how these principles take shape in practice.
From Belgium, an experience of the Brussels‑Capital Region offers a concrete exploration of how multiple layers of policy and operational design interact: the land trust approach; the governance of land and buildings; the organisation of services; the mobilisation of local stakeholder networks; and the contribution of supporting institutions and organisations. In its inception phase, the initiative benefited from the EU’s Urban Innovation Action (UIA), which helped consolidate a model explicitly linked to independent living and active ageing. Its distinctive social‑care perspective integrates life and end‑of‑life dimensions, ensuring continuity, dignity, and representation.
From Spain, a small‑town experience will show how demographic challenges and progressive depopulation can be addressed through a self‑managed housing solution for older people, demonstrating how local communities can generate sustainable responses that reinforce autonomy and social cohesion.
These contributions open a broader reflection: is a shared policy thread emerging across Europe, one capable of guiding more integrated and intersectoral approaches to housing and long‑term care? The Policy Lab will invite participants to consider this question collectively, drawing on diverse national experiences and on the perspectives of all attendees.
Further testimonies will enrich the exchange, supporting a constructive dialogue on the conditions that enable older people to live independently, actively, and with full recognition of their rights.
The policy lab’s programme and background paper are available here.
To participate, please register here: https://forms.gle/RUs86pM4agY4ns2o7
We can’t wait to see you online!
