Social Architecture in the Age of Baby Boomer Retirement

Abstract

The World’s population is ageing. The future of current generations are compromised by the past generations consumption of resources. Advances in medicine has extended longevity. Older People are now healthier and more active when they reach retirement. Retirement will soon become a thing of the past. By 2031, baby boomers will turn 85 and generation X turns 65. Society is also becoming more urbanized. By 2031, the global population of those living in urbanized cities and towns is estimated to be five billion. In New Zealand, 68% percent of the population will be living in urban areas by then. Given these trends of an ageing population and urbanization, the social perception of retirement need to be re-evaluated and re-thought. The current relationship between population ageing and urban growth is problematic. Traditionally, the focus of urban city growth is to build for the next generation leaving older citizens marginalised. Increasing population density has produced a polarized effect favouring privatization and creating wider gaps in the age profiles of communities. This issue is economically driven, creating greater social inequality among age groups, favouring the younger working population over the elderly. The privatisation of urban development contributes to decaying social life and produces an unhealthy environment for the ageing population. Despite the increasing aging of the population, the elderly is not regarded as the cultural mainstream and are often isolated from urban areas rather than being recognised as an integral part of society. Soon retirement villages will not be an option for the aged anymore because of this isolation. The social wealth of the aged population will be forgotten, and lost unless urban communities are redesigned to adapt to the ageing phenomenon. Using the idea of bringing back the social wealth of the elderly to society as the basis of my design investigation, this thesis explores the effects of social architecture, the needs of the baby boomers and how these can be combined to provide a sustainable and comfortable place for their retirement living. How can social architecture help baby boomers integrate and become an active contributing participant in todays society?