Tireless advocate Carrie Leljedal returns to the podcast to discuss her work to bridge the worlds of advocacy for elders and people living with disabilities, which began after her adult son experienced a prolonged lockdown away from family and friends during the pandemic. She turned her anger and frustration into a new career as a champion for essential caregiver legislation, ensuring that families are never again locked away from loved ones — no matter what kind of care community they call home.

Learn more about Caregivers for Compromise: https://caregivers4compromise.com/

Read the bill: https://www.congress.gov/118/bills/s4280/BILLS-118s4280is.pdf

Learn more about the DCW Strategies Center: https://acl.gov/DCWcenter

Attend our conference in November: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

It'll soon be that time again: We're gathering the Green House Project and Pioneer Network communities together at the Center for Innovation conference, coming to Grand Rapids, Mich. from November 11-13.

This week, join CFI team members Susan Ryan, Marla DeVries, and Stacey Bergmann for a preview of the conference, a discussion of why in-person connections are so important at this point in the history of eldercare, and what sets our event apart from others on the conference circuit.

Take advantage of low early bird rates on our conference: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

View the full agenda: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference-agenda/

Across all industries, it can be difficult to separate promising, useful tech solutions from the hype — especially in senior living and eldercare, which have historically been slow to adopt even basic systems like electronic health records and high-speed wifi.

Parasol Alliance CEO Amber Bardon has spent nearly a decade trying to change that reality, working with providers across the spectrum to adopt and implement comprehensive technology plans. She joins the podcast to explain why leaders must rethink their organizations' relationships with tech: Instead of "IT" being a person who stops by every once in a while to fix a buggy printer, it must be the cornerstone of any forward-thinking provider.

Learn more about Parasol Alliance: https://parasolalliance.com/

Subscribe to the "Raising Tech" podcast: https://parasolalliance.com/resource_type/podcast/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

While the Green House model is the most widely implemented small-home nursing care concept in the U.S., it's not alone — innovators around the world have developed person-directed, human-scale communities where elders of all abilities can thrive.

Belong, a non-profit provider organization, has brought its own household model — the Belong Village — to towns across the United Kingdom. CEO Martin Rix joins the podcast to discuss Belong's empowering suite of services, its membership in the Household Model International Consortiumalongside The Green House Project and Australia's HammondCare, and the lessons we can learn from forward-thinking eldercare leaders across borders.

Learn more about Belong: https://www.belong.org.uk/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

With each year that passes, Pride celebrations become more and more mainstream — but in our current political and social climate, LGBTQ+ people of all ages continue to face demonization and stigmatization, a reality that is sometimes magnified for elders.

Today in the United States, about half of older LGBTQ+ adults live in states where they can legally face housing discrimination simply for being who they are.

Sydney Kopp-Richardson, director of SAGE's National LGBTQ+ Housing Initiative, joins the podcast to discuss her work to build affirming, dignified communities where LGBTQ+ elders can live together in safety, support, and joy. Kopp-Richardson reminds us that while we have a long road ahead toward achieving true equality, we all can continue leading with love — and fighting for what we know is right for people of all ages.

Learn more about the SAGE National LGBTQ+ Housing Initiative: https://www.sageusa.org/what-we-do/national-lgbt-housing-initiative-2/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

Just about everyone who works in the eldercare space has heard about the negative effects of ageism in our society, but we can't truly fight age-based discrimination until we look inward — even within our own sector.

Jordan Evans, co-founder of Art Against Ageism, joins the podcast to discuss his experiences as a younger person in the eldercare landscape, and his strategies for encouraging everyone to embrace their age — and make the sector welcoming to young, old, and everyone in between.

Learn more about Art Against Ageism: https://artagainstageism.org/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

Steve Nygren, visionary founder of the Serenbe community outside of Atlanta, returns to the podcast to discuss his vision for intentional communities where elders can age well — but not because they're designed exclusively for older adults, but for people of all ages to stay active, stay connected, and stay engaged with day-to-day life.

If you missed Steve's first appearance on the podcast, check out episode 87, "The Serenbe Story of Biophilic Living," to learn more about his background as a visionary developer and the tenets of biophilia.

Learn more about Serenbe: https://www.serenbe.com/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

nequities in eldercare affect not just the quality of services but the physical spaces themselves: Far too many operators, policymakers, and investors believe that people receiving Medicaid-funded services simply deserve lower-quality, older, more institutional buildings to call home.

Kia Weatherspoon, the founder and president of Determined by Design, is determined to change those perceptions. Her firm provides high-quality, inclusive, and thoughtful interior design services to developers of affordable senior living projects and other new infrastructure.

Inspired by her esxperiences visiting a brother in prison and serving in the armed forces, Weatherspoon has dedicated her career to building welcoming, meaningful, and dignified spaces for everyone to call home.

Learn more about Determined by Design: https://www.determinedbydesign.com/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

As the proportion of older Americans grows, so too will the ranks of "solo agers" – people navigating the aging process without children or other relatives. And for elders who need extra assistance in making major decisions around housing and finances, solo aging may lead to legal guardianship and outcomes that don't align with their values, preferences, or best interests.

Kimberly George, CEO of the New York-based Project Guardianship, joins the podcast to discuss her organization's mission: building more dignified, person-directed alternatives to guardianship that ensure elders' true wishes are honored at every step of the aging journey.

Learn more about Project Guardianship: https://projectguardianship.org/

Learn more about supported decision-making: https://acl.gov/programs/consumer-control/supported-decision-making-program

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/

In honor of National Nurses' Week, we're sitting down with Dr. Donna Fick – director of the Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence at Penn State University – and three of her Ph.D. student-researchers, Thakshila Dasanayake, Olivia Rubio, and Nahida Akter.

While their backgrounds and upbringing couldn't be more different, these nursing leaders are bound by a desire to improve the lives of elders through groundbreaking research. By building on a growing evidence base for person-directed care and other more dignified and empowering interventions, Fick and her students are blazing a trail for the next generation of caregivers and elders.

Learn more about the Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence: https://www.nursing.psu.edu/cgne/

Save the date for our annual conference, coming November 11-13: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/2024-conference/