UK-South Korea Ageing in Place Research Network

人口老龄化是全球社会和经济生活的一个主要特征，到2050年，全球60岁及以上人口预计将达到21%，达到21亿左右。2018年，英国18%的人口年龄在65岁及以上。到2035年，这一比例预计将达到23%（约1600万）。韩国是亚洲人口老龄化最严重的国家之一，65岁及以上的人口预计将在2035年达到1500万，占总人口的30%。人口老龄化与生育率下降的结合对个人、家庭和整个社会提出了挑战：由于核心家庭急剧减少，家庭的作用也在发生变化。在传统的家庭结构中，老年人的照顾很大程度上依赖于年轻的家庭成员，这一结构正面临压力。它凸显了人们的担忧，即人口老龄化的转变可能会拖累该国的经济，并对公共财政和生活水平产生负面影响。年龄和家庭结构的这些根本变化对整个社会都有重要影响：老年人的生活方式；他们居住的房子和社区；照顾老年人；以及老一辈和年轻一代融合的方式。城市化是大多数国家在过去半个世纪经历过的另一种现象。1950年，世界上只有30%的人口居住在城镇，但到2020年，这一比例上升到56%；预计到2050年，城市居民将占世界人口的66%，接近100亿。城市化正在迅速发展，特别是在英国和韩国，分别有84%和81%的人口居住在城市。生活在城市环境，特别是大城市地区的老年人的增长速度超过了总人口的增长速度。虽然城市地区提供更好的设施和更接近公共服务，并可能为老年人口提供更好的生活质量，但他们面临的挑战甚至比以前更大：老年人比例的增加给公共支出带来了巨大压力，对保健服务和社会福利的压力越来越大。在此背景下，城市已成为21世纪健康老龄化挑战的问题和解决方案的一部分，为老年人提供更好的服务和创造支持性环境。为了应对城市老龄化议程，近20年前，世界卫生组织（世卫组织）出版了《全球老龄友好型城市指南》及其配套的《老龄友好型城市基本特征清单》。老年人友好型城市的特征体现在城市生活的八个领域：户外空间和建筑；住房;交通运输;公民参与和就业；通信和信息；社区支助和保健服务；社会参与;尊重和社会包容。尽管对老年人友好的城市观点在提高人们对老龄化影响的认识方面发挥了重要作用，但许多城市地区并不总是对老年人最友好。从那时起，在受到与全球社会、经济和保健变化有关的压力影响的当代城市的背景下，对该方法的价值进行了评估。韩国和英国已经积极朝着这一方向迈进，韩国的32个城市和英国的32个地区已经作为2010年成立的“世卫组织全球老年友好城市和社区网络”的成员参与其中。然而，仍有许多工作要做，拟议的网络将有助于实现世卫组织的愿景和目标。

Ageing populations are a major feature of social and economic life globally, with the world's population aged 60 years and over expected to reach 21% and around 2.1 billion people by 2050. In 2018, 18% of the UK population were aged 65 and over. This is expected to reach 23% (approximately 16 million) by 2035. South Korea has one of the most aged populations in Asia with the number of people aged 65 or older expected to reach 15 million, accounting for 30% of the population in 2035. The combination of an ageing population with reduced levels of fertility presents challenges to individuals, families, and society as a whole: as the nuclear family is shrinking dramatically, the role of the family is also changing. The traditional family structure, where the care of older people relies heavily on younger family members, comes under pressure. It highlights concerns that the ageing demographic transition could pose a drag on the country's economy and negatively impact public finances and standards of living. These fundamental changes in the age and family structures have important implications for the whole of society: the way older people live; the house and community they live in; care for older people; and the way older and younger generations integrate. Urbanisation is another phenomenon that most countries have experienced over the past half-century. In 1950 just 30% of the world's population lived in cities and towns but the proportion increased to 56% by 2020; and it is expected to continue to grow to 66% of the world's population, almost 10 billion inhabitants, being urban dwellers by 2050. Urbanisation has been taking place rapidly particularly in the UK and South Korea, with 84% and 81% of the respective populations living. The growth of older people living in urban settings, in particular the large urban areas, is growing faster than the total population. While urban areas offer better facilities and closer proximity to public services and can potentially provide a better quality of life to the older population, the challenges that they face are even greater than before: the higher proportion of older people has put great strain on public spending, with growing pressure on health services and social welfare. In this context, cities have become both parts of the problem and part of the solution to the healthy ageing challenges of the 21st century to provide better services and create supportive environments for older people to thrive. To tackle the urban ageing agenda, nearly two decades ago the World Health Organization (WHO) published the Global Age-Friendly Cities Guide and a companion 'Checklist of Essential Features of Age-Friendly Cities'. The features of age-friendly cities are determined in eight domains of urban life: outdoor spaces and buildings; housing; transportation; civic participation and employment; communication and information; community support and health services; social participation; and respect and social inclusion. Although the age-friendly city perspective has been influential in raising awareness about the impact of ageing, many urban areas are not always the most old-age friendly. Since then, the value of the approach has been assessed in the context of contemporary cities affected by pressures associated with global social, economic and health care changes. South Korea and the UK have already been active in moving toward this direction with 32 cities in South Korea and 32 areas in the UK having already been involved as members of 'WHO Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities' established in 2010. However, much remains to be done and the proposed network will contribute towards achieving the WHO vision and objectives.