The College of Social Work would like to take this time to recognize one of its academic centers whose mission is to innovate with older adults through research, education and engagement to make central Ohio communities age friendly. The Age-Friendly Innovation Center (AFIC) is committed to a set of principles that guide and ground the work of the center including striving toward culture competence, accessibility, community engagement and interdisciplinary collaboration. Recently AFIC released a 10-year digital timeline highlighting its milestones and groundbreaking work.
AFIC collaborates with older adults in central Ohio – a group projected to become a larger share of the population in coming decades – to make communities more livable for individuals of all ages and abilities.
Dr. Holly Dabelko-Schoeny (PhD ’02), a professor in the college and director of research for the center, said the effort is affiliated with the network launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2010 to improve conditions for aging adults in communities around the globe. Through the support of elected leaders, the city of Columbus and Franklin County joined the network in 2016 and 2018 respectively, and AFIC was launched at the college in 2021.
Center director Marisa Sheldon (BSW ’10, MSW ’11) said the WHO created a framework to assess, plan and improve the age-friendliness of communities around the world as the population of older adults grows. Currently nearly 2,000 communities representing 51 countries belong to the network globally and more than 1,000 in the U.S. Columbus was the second to join in the state of Ohio, which now has well over 40 member communities.
Along with Jennifer Heston-Mullins (MSW ’99), Sheldon co-leads the Coalition of Age-Friendly Communities of Ohio (CAFCO), a grassroots effort of enrolled communities to make the state a good place to age.
Dabelko-Schoeny says the center is engaged in research and education in areas of commitment including transportation, housing, ageism, extreme weather resilience, work force development and older adult behavioral health.
Christine Happel (BSW ’09, MSW ’14), assistant director of the center, says, “These areas of commitment — identified by older residents and service providers — reflect the WHO’s age-friendly domains that create inclusive and resilient places to live.” A key driver of the center’s identification of these areas of commitment is the Age-Friendly Innovation Center Resident Council, older adults that provide insights and strategic guidance to the center through their lived experience. Phoebe Allebach (MSW ’24), community engagement coordinator, works closely with resident council members and shares, “Our Resident Council members are among the strongest advocates for the age‑friendly movement, embodying our belief that aging is cool. Through their lived experience, local knowledge and trusted community perspectives, they not only inform each phase of the center’s work.”
Sheldon says, “The success of our work rests in our partnerships with older adults, community practitioners, governmental officials, other scholars and students. It is through the shared knowledge and experience of our partners that we can address our communities’ most pressing needs.”
Read more about AFIC recent news and initiatives here:
