Designing with optimism for positive longevity

According to the World Bank, life expectancy in the UK has been steadily growing since the 1960s. Today, someone born in the 1960s and in good health can expect to live to nearly 90. It’s predicted that half the kids born now in the UK should prepare to live to 104.

Gerontologist and director of the Oxford Institute of Ageing, Sarah Harper, thinks we should stop using the word old to refer to anyone younger than 80. She suggests that people in their 60s and possibly 70s and 80s should still be considered active adults.

For too long, ageism has pervaded our culture, and it has damaging consequences. Discrimination and negative attitudes about ageing are bad for our health and for society. We don’t see ourselves represented in the media, may feel negatively about ourselves, or may not get the healthcare we need. It’s ridiculous when soon, more than a quarter of us will be aged 60+ and still probably have 20 to 30 years of active living ahead of us.

Cause for optimism

We have another good reason to shift to a more positive narrative around ageing. Researchers at Yale University found that people with a positive view of ageing lived a whopping 7.5 years longer than people with a negative view.

By deliberately confronting ageism and taking an intergenerational approach to product and service design, as opposed to focusing predominantly on the needs of people in the ‘prime of life’, we can expand our view and see the opportunities and potential of older people.

Society can benefit enormously from the skills, wisdom and life experiences of its older members if we create environments that support our health, social needs and economic security as we age. Seeing people through this perspective encourages a healthier, more inclusive approach to ageing, where our later years are seen not as a time of inevitable decline but of continued growth and engagement.

By redefining what it means to be old and embracing the diversity of experiences as we age, we can dismantle the outdated caricatures and recognise the active, vibrant lives that many older adults lead. This shift in perspective can have intergenerational benefits, improve the quality of life for older people, and create a societal shift that our future selves will thank us for — because the ageing population is not other people. It’s you.

This is an excerpt from our 2024 book, Optimism. Order your copy here.