Andrzej Klimczuk

The paper presents the concept of the "silver economy" as an economic system related to population aging and underlines the features of this policy idea. The study first introduces the discourse and stages of constructing this system by international and national public policy actors in aging. Next, a critical analysis of the dimensions and areas of implementation and development of the silver economy as a policy concept was carried out as well as a review of its external and internal limitations. The conclusion contains proposals for further research directions.

Opracowanie ma charakter poglądowo-teoretyczny, powstało bowiem na podstawie przeglądu dostępnej literatury przedmiotu. Publikacja skierowana jest zarówno do naukowców jak i studentów zajmujących się tematyką starzenia się ludności, starości i osób starszych oraz do coraz szerszego grona zainteresowanych tymi zagadnieniami praktyków, w tym polityków i decydentów oraz reprezentantów usług publicznych, przedstawicieli mediów i organizacji pozarządowych. ** The study is illustrative and theoretical in nature, as it was based on a review of the available literature on the subject. The publication is addressed to both scholars and students dealing with the subjects of population ageing, old age, and older adults, as well as to a growing group of practitioners interested in these issues, including politicians and decision-makers as well as representatives of public services, the media, and non-governmental organizations.

Artykuł zawiera przegląd wybranych powiązań pandemii COVID-19 z teoriami ryzyka. W pierwszej kolejności przedstawiono podstawowe pojęcia dotyczące przygotowania i mobilizowania sieci podmiotów polityki publicznej do wspólnych działań w warunkach niepewności. W dalszej części omówiono zagadnienie gotowości na ryzyko wystąpienia pandemii i jej zwalczania. Następnie przedstawiono wybrane możliwe efekty społeczne, gospodarcze i polityczne pandemii COVID-19. W podsumowaniu wskazane zostały rekomendacje dotyczące zarządzania podmiotami publicznymi na dalszych etapach rozwoju pandemii i w okresie po pandemii oraz propozycje dalszych kierunków badań. // The article presents an overview of selected connections of the COVID-19 pandemic with risk theories. The study first explores the basic concepts of preparing and mobilizing networks of public policy actors to act together under conditions of uncertainty. The following section discusses the pandemic risk preparedness and fighting. Then, selected possible social, economic and political effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed. In summary, recommendations regarding the public management in the further stages of the pandemic development and in the post-pandemic period were indicated, as well as proposals for further research directions.

“Age of life” is one of the essential characteristics that differentiate people. Age perception is also associated with social justice. The concept of age is defined ambiguously. At the same time, the different age criteria also forms the basis of age differentiation and age discrimination. The population lead to distinctions of age groups, age categories, and generations. Differences between generations also lead to Study in the concepts of intergenerationality, intergenerational justice, and intergenerational policies.

Generational differences in societies are characteristics generally attributed to people’s age that constitute a sociocultural phenomenon. Divisions in the generations differ across nations and extend even to civilizations. Perception and recognition of the different characteristics of each generation affect the cooperation between people in social, political, and economic capacities, and subsequently extend to entities in the public, informal, commercial, and nongovernmental sectors. From the perspective of social justice, it is important to draw attention to how workplace management techniques are used to promote equal opportunities among representatives of various generations.

Trust is important in the food sector. This is primarily because households entrust some of the tasks related to food preparation to food processors. The public is concerned about pesticides, food additives, preservatives, and processed foods that may harbor unwanted chemicals or additives. After numerous food scandals, consumers expect food processing industries and retailers to take responsibility for food safety. Meanwhile, the food industry focuses on profit growth and costs reduction to achieve higher production efficiency and competitiveness. It means that they introduce innovations, such as new production methods, processing techniques, and additives. Consumers have to delegate the responsibility for ensuring food safety to food producers, retailers, and regulatory authorities who ensure that the foods are safe, healthy, and pose no risks. For consumers, trusting these actors can reduce feelings of uncertainty. It is helpful for companies to be responsible for their activities through transparency and traceability. In turn, the food industry tries to gain consumers’ trust by providing objective information, such as ranked brands or labels on food packages.

Generacja sandwicz - grupa osób w wieku średnim, która ze wzglȩdu na swoj¸a} centraln¸a} pozycjȩ w strukturze wieku i w zwi¸a}zanej z ni¸a} stratyfikacji wiekowej stanowi generacjȩ, które jednocześnie opiekuje siȩ osobami starszymi i osobami młodszymi. Zjawisko to określane jest też jako "kobiety w środku" lub "złapani w środku". Koncepcja "generacji sandwicz" w w¸a}skim ujȩciu odnoszona jest przeważnie do tradycyjnie postrzeganych ról opiekuńczych kobiet, które s¸a} w wieku środkowym, a zarazem na przedpolu starości. W ujȩciu feministycznym społeczne oczekiwania wobec kobiet znajduj¸a}cych siȩ miȩdzy 40. a 60. rokiem życia s¸a} zorientowane z jednej strony na udzielanie pomocy dzieciom i młodzieży w uzyskaniu samodzielnego dorosłego życia, z drugiej zaś s¸a ukierunkowane na udzielanie pomocy pielȩgnacyjnej starszemu pokoleniu szczególnie w przypadku niepełnosprawności, otȩpienia lub choroby Alzheimera. Oczekiwania wobec powyższych ról opiekuńczych s¸a sformalizowane w mniejszym lub wiȩkszym stopniu co prowadzi do nierówności miȩdzy kobietami i mȩżczyznami. ** Sandwich generation - a group of middle-aged people who, due to its central position in the age structure and related age stratification is a generation that simultaneously takes care of elderly people and younger people. This phenomenon is also referred to as "women in the middle" or "caught in the middle". The concept of "sandwich generation" in a narrow sense refers mainly to the traditionally perceived caring roles of women who are middle-aged and at the same time on the forefront of old age. In the feminist approach, the social expectations towards women between 40 and 60 years old are oriented on helping children and young people to get an independent adult life, on the other hand they are oriented towards providing care to the older generation, especially in the case of disability, dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. Expectations regarding these care roles are formalized in a smaller one or to a greater extent which leads to inequality between women and men.

An area agency on aging is a public or private nonprofit organization designated by the state to address the needs and concerns of all older persons at the regional and local levels in the United States 2019). AAAs have a successful history of developing, coordinating, and implementing comprehensive networks of services and programs that enrich communities and the lives of older adults. AAAs were established through a provision of the Older Americans Act, which was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Specifically, AAAs were created with the 1973 reauthorization of the OAA. AAAs create the infrastructure to execute comprehensive long-term support services that ensure the independence of older adults.

Integracja wiekowa - termin stosowany w gerontologii społecznej w przynajmniej dwóch znaczeniach. W ujȩciu w¸a}skim - przyjȩtym głównie w literaturze anglojȩzycznej - integracja wiekowa odnosi siȩ do takiej struktury ról społecznych w różnorodnych instytucjach, która umożliwia istnienie różnic, ale nie s¸a} one zależne ściśle od struktury wieku, tj. tego czy ktoś jest osob¸a} młod¸a}, w wieku środkowym, czy też w wieku starszym. Chodzi tutaj w szczególności o instytucje edukacyjne, ekonomiczne, polityczne, religijne i czasu wolnego w których osoby z odmiennych grup wieku i generacji odgrywaj¸a rozmaite role i zajmuj¸a różne pozycje. Integracja wiekowa opiera siȩ na założeniu, że dostȩp do instytucji, możliwości wyjścia z niej i dostȩp do produktów ; zrealizowanych w rzeczywistości usług i wypłaconych świadczeń oraz rezultatów ; efektów zrealizowanych usług i świadczeń np. zmniejszenie ubóstwa, poprawa stanu zdrowia, działalności tych instytucji jest równy dla wszystkich bez wzglȩdu na wiek. ** Age integration - a term used in social gerontology in at least two senses. In a narrow perspective - adopted mainly in English-language literature - age integration refers to such a structure of social roles in various institutions that allows for differences, but they do not depend strictly on the age structure, i.e. whether someone is a middle-aged adult or in an older age. This is particularly about educational, economic, political, religious and leisure institutions in which people from different age groups and generations play different roles and occupy different positions. Age integration is based on the assumption that access to the institution, the possibility of exiting it and access to products ; services implemented in reality and benefits and outcomes paid out; the effects of implemented services and services, eg reduction of poverty, improvement of health, activities of these institutions is equal for all regardless of age.

Gerontology together with its subfields, such as social gerontology, geragogy, educational gerontology, political gerontology, environmental gerontology, and financial gerontology, is still a relatively new academic discipline that is currently intensively developing, expanding research fields and combining various theoretical and practical perspectives. The interdisciplinarity, transdisciplinarity, and multidisciplinarity of research on ageing and old age, despite its vast thematic, methodological and theoretical diversity, have a common denominator, which is the focus of research work on improving the quality of life of older people. It is the concern for the components of quality of life such as welfare and well-being as well as focus on learning about phenomena conditioning successful ageing that has become motivators and premises hidden or visible in many texts included in the Research Topic “Perspectives and Theories of Social Innovation for Ageing Population.” The Research Topic that we are presenting to our readers is unique not only because of its size but above all because of its novelty and social involvement, visible in the content of individual chapters. The presented collection includes 17 articles prepared in total by 76 authors from the following countries: China, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Two journals were combined with this Research Topic: “Frontiers in Public Health” and “Frontiers in Sociology.” The presented Research Topic contains seven types of articles covering: two community case studies, eight original research articles, two perspective articles, one hypothesis and theory paper, one policy and practice review, one methods article, and two book reviews. The rationale to start work on this set of texts was the desire to continue and deepen the research analyses of the editors of this set, which concern the development of social innovations for the ageing population as well as changes of public policy on ageing. This Research Topic deals with topics covering issues such as social learning, intergenerational transmission, senior entrepreneurship, creative content creation by older adults, care services, raising the independence of older people in their living environments, dementia challenges, the image of the older generation in local social policies, new trends in qualitative research on old age, strategies for dealing with chronic diseases, the use of digital tools in health education, the silver economy/longevity economy, age-friendly environments, the diversity of structures and social services, preparation for old age, and food safety. The wide variety of submitted texts shows several selected and, according to the authors, current challenges that contemporary seniors have to face. The articles comprising this Research Topic are organized according to five themes.

The popularisation of drawing up codes that are addressed to various social groups is one of the features of the modern world. However, researchers of the phenomenon have not yet reached a consensus about the moral validity and utility of this activity. The article thoroughly reviews the Polish literature on the subject with regard to the reasons for taking a moderate stance on the codification of ethical standards. The essay describes the main concepts of ethical codes as well as arguments for their approval and rejection. Attention is drawn to the ways of improving the effectiveness of codes and to the ethical decision-making procedure that reconciles the positions of the supporters and opponents of codification.

The aim of this workshop was to ask potential end-users of the citizens’ information pack on legal and ethical issues around ICTs the following questions: What is your knowledge of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, and what actions have you taken in response to these regulations? What challenges are you experiencing in ensuring the protection and security of your project data, and compliance with the GDPR, within existing data management processes/systems? What information/tools/resources do you need to overcome these challenges? What are the best formats/channels for receiving, sharing and acting upon this information? What is the most appropriate structure/format for the citizens’ information pack?

Research within the H2020 PROGRESSIVE project has identified good practices in user co-production strategies and methodologies. Early findings from research in the PROGRESSIVE project were shared with relevant stakeholders outside the consortium for consultation and review. The outcomes of that initial investigation highlighted the need to focus on the objectives, processes, and methods used in user and older people co-production. This guide adapts these insights and makes them relevant specifically for standardisation in ICT for active and healthy ageing. This guide was approved by representatives of the PROGRESSIVE project on 22 February 2018. The consortium has requested comments from interested stakeholders in an enquiry from 1 March to 30 April 2018. The PROGRESSIVE guide was approved on 5 June 2018.

Globally, the population is ageing, which has serious consequences for businesses. The prosperity of companies is crucially dependent on the ability to effectively manage their employees, including older workers. Best practice in age management is defined as those measures that combat age barriers and/or promote age diversity. These measures may entail specific initiatives aimed at particular dimensions of age management; they may also include more general employment or human resources policies that help to create an environment in which individual employees can achieve their potential without being disadvantaged by their age. Promoting early retirement is generally not encouraged. Companies now have to encourage longer working lives. Much needs to be done to ensure that work remains a positive experience for workers throughout their career trajectories, and it does not damage their health. It has been found by studies that health is significantly related to retirement timing, influences work performance, and health-related organisational policies can positively influence employee retention. The major contemporary challenges to health at work are those associated with the way work, and work organisations are designed and managed. This is especially true for older workers. A comprehensive and effective approach towards age management can be very beneficial for them. How should companies implement age management? Some possible ways are set out in this policy brief below, which focuses on best practices in age management regarding ergonomic aspects and health interventions for older workers at an organisational level. The intention is to discuss the current situation and to illustrate some organisational techniques in selected countries. This policy brief can serve as an inspiration for, among others, companies and policymakers. Recommendations for successful practice are included. In total, this policy brief covers 8 COST member countries to give a glimpse of the current situation of best practice in age management and show how companies in various states deal with ergonomic aspects, health interventions and the ageing of their labour force.

Consumers are increasingly aware of the health- and safety-related implications of the food which they can buy in the market. At the same time, households have become more aware of their environmental responsibilities. Regarding the production of food, a crucial and multifunctional role is played by agriculture. The way vegetables, fruits, and other crops are grown and how livestock is raised has an impact on the environment and landscape. Operations performed by farmers, such as water management, can be dangerous for the soil and the whole ecosystem. Consequently, there is a search for natural ways of sustaining the impact of agriculture on the environment. In this context, one of the most popular ideas is organic agriculture. In the literature on the subject, there are many concepts that some authors consider to be synonymous even as others argue that these terms are not interchangeable. There is, for example, "organic agriculture," "alternative agriculture," "sustainable agriculture," "ecological agriculture," "biological agriculture," "niche farming," "community-supported agriculture," and "integrated pest management." Very often, techniques and products related to organic agriculture are described by marketing experts with the use of abbreviations such as "bio" and "eco." Products with such markings and labels are increasingly popular in stores that often give them separate shelves for their sale. Despite the higher price compared to conventional products, they are increasingly sought by consumers. The entry examines the various impacts of organic agriculture with a view to these trends.

In recent years we may observe increasing interest in the development of social innovation both regarding theory as well as the practice of responding to social problems and challenges. One of the crucial challenges at the beginning of the 21st century is population ageing. Various new and innovative initiatives, programs, schemes, and projects to respond to negative consequences of this demographic process are emerging around the world. However, social theories related to ageing are still insufficiently combined with these new practices, social movements, organisational models, and institutions. Many scholars are still using notions and tools from classical theories of social gerontology or the sociology of ageing such as disengagement theory, activity theory, and successful and productive ageing. Such theories do not sufficiently explain ageing in the context of, for example, a broad use of the information and communications technologies including robotics and automation, new healthcare and long-term care models, advancements in the development and governance of age-friendly environments, and public engagement of older adults into co-production of services delivered by public, private, non-governmental as well as non-formal entities.

Poniższa dyskusja odbyła siȩ we wrześniu 2018 w Szkole Głównej Handlowej w Warszawie. Skupiła zarówno badaczy problematyki polityki senioralnej, ekspertów, analityków. Dyskusjȩ moderował i zaplanował Andrzej Klimczuk, zwi¸a}zany z SGH, natomiast zaproszenie do dyskusji przyjȩli: Barbara Szatur-Jaworska, polityk społeczny i gerontolog z Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Paweł Kubicki, ekonomista, SGH, Marek Niezabitowski, socjolog z Politechniki Śl¸a}skiej, Ryszard Majer, polityk społeczny, Agnieszka Cieśla, architektka i urbanistka, Politechnika Warszawska, Marzena Rudnicka, fundatorka oraz prezeska Krajowego Instytutu Gospodarki Senioralnej. Paneliści podczas dyskusji analizowali nastȩpuj¸a}ce zagadnienia: I. pocz¸a}tki polityki senioralnej, jej definiowanie, dokumenty strategiczne państwa, II. rola samorz¸a}dów w animowaniu działań w obrȩbie polityki senioralnej oraz organizacji pozarz¸a}dowych, III. powstanie i rola ustawy o seniorach, IV. zróżnicowanie środowiska osób w wieku senioralnym, V. działania w innych krajach w obrȩbie polityki senioralnej, VI. zmiany w świadomości społecznej, ewolucja postaw wobec osób starszych, starości, starzenia siȩ, VII. rynek produktów i usług dla seniorów, VIII. aktywność seniorów, formalna i nieformalna, infrastruktura aktywności, IX. mieszkalnictwo dla osób starszych i starzej¸a}cej siȩ ludności X. rola państwa i samorz¸adu w polityce senioralnej, dialog z władz¸a, partnerstwo publiczno-prywatne, XI. wyzwania i kierunki rozwoju polityki senioralnej, XII. deficyt usług opiekuńczych XIII. polityka senioralna i emerytalna, XIV. konwergencja i dywergencja w polityce senioralnej. ** The following discussion took place in September 2018 at the Warsaw School of Economics. It focused on both senior politics, experts, and analysts. The discussion was moderated and planned by Andrzej Klimczuk, associated with the Warsaw School of Economics, and invited to the discussion: Barbara Szatur-Jaworska, social politician and gerontologist from the University of Warsaw, Paweł Kubicki, economist, Warsaw School of Economics, Marek Niezabitowski, sociologist from the Silesian University of Technology, Ryszard Majer, social politician, Agnieszka Cieśla, architect and urban planner, Warsaw University of Technology, Marzena Rudnicka, founder and president of the National Institute of Senior Management. Panelists during the discussion analyzed the following issues: I. Beginnings of the senior policy, its definition, strategic documents of the state, II. The role of local governments in animating activities within the framework of senior policy and non-governmental organizations, III. Creation and role of the law on seniors, IV. Diversification of the environment of seniors, V. Activities in other countries within the framework of the senior policy, VI. Changes in social awareness, the evolution of attitudes towards older people, old age, ageing, VII. The market for products and services for seniors, VIII. Seniors’ activity, formal and informal, activity infrastructure, IX. Housing for older people and ageing population X. The role of the state and self-government in the senior policy, dialogue with the authorities, public-private partnership, XI. Challenges and directions of development of the senior policy, XII. The deficit of care services, XIII. Senior and pension policy, XIV. Convergence and divergence in the senior policy.

W literaturze przedmiotu określenie "kapitał" wystȩpuje zarówno w ujȩciach funkcjonalnych, strukturalnych, normatywnych, jak i aksjologicznych. W naukach humanistycznych i społecznych pojȩcie to rozumiane jest jako wartość odnoszona do czynnika ludzkiego. W naukach ekonomicznych kapitał to pojȩcie wȩższe niż "zasób". Zasoby s¸a} wykorzystywane przez ludzi do zaspokajania ich potrzeb, s¸a} czynnikami produkcji dóbr i usług. Kapitał to szczególny czynnik produkcji, gdyż stanowi już przekształcone zasoby, które mog¸a} zostać uruchomione, by przynieść zysk, powiȩkszyć szanse oraz osi¸a}gn¸ać cele i korzyści na rynku. ** In literature on the subject, the term "capital" appears in both functional, structural, normative and axiological approaches. In the humanities and social sciences this concept is understood as a value related to the human factor. In economic sciences, capital is a narrower concept than "resource." Resources are used by people to meet their needs, they are factors in the production of goods and services. Capital is a special factor of production, because it is already transformed resources that can be launched to bring profit, increase opportunities and achieve goals and benefits on the market.

Core-periphery imbalances and regional disparities figure prominently on the agenda of several disciplines, which result from their enormous impact on economic and social development around the world. In sociology, international relations, and economics, this concept is crucial in explanations of economic exchange. There are few countries that play a dominant role in world trade, while most countries have a secondary or even a tertiary position in world trade. Moreover, when we are discussing global, continental, regional, and national economies, we can present regions and even smaller territorial units which have higher wages than some underdeveloped areas within the same larger area in focus. Such regional inequalities and injustices are the main themes of the core-periphery model, which focuses on tendencies of economic activities to concentrate around some pivotal points. It seeks to explain the spatial inequalities or imbalances observable on all levels or scales by highlighting the role of horizontal and vertical relations between various entities from the level of towns and cities to the global scale. The existence of a core-periphery structure implies that in the spatial dimension, the socioeconomic development is usually uneven. From such a geographical perspective, the regions known as the "core" are advanced in various areas, while other regions described as the "periphery" serve as a social, economic, and political backstages, backyards, and supply sources or - in some cases - are even subject to degradation and decline. Furthermore, the level of development has a negative correlation with distance from the core. The economies of the states that have gone through various stages of development at the earliest and with the fastest pace have become wealthy core regions and growth poles. Those countries and regions where these processes have been slower become or remain the poor periphery.

We provide to readers the 11th volume of the "Czech-Polish-Slovak Studies in Andragogy and Social Gerontology" series. We are delighted to announce that the presented study is the result of the work of scientists from seven countries: Austria, China, Ghana, Hungary, Japan, Poland, and Russia. This international collection of texts is part of the global discourse on the determinants of adult education and the functioning of people in late adulthood. The 11th volume is a collection of research results that show both the positive and negative dimensions of ageing through the prism of research experience from various geographical and cultural areas. The researchers invited to the presented volume tried to illustrate the issues assigned to the following topics: ageing with dignity; retirement age; assumptions and conditions resulting from living in the home; the relationship between challenges concerning life expectancy and needs; care and ageing services; and foundations and potential changes in pension systems. The research results presented in this volume have a common denominator, which is caring for the quality of life of the older people regardless of their place of residence. Thus, the study "Between Successful and Unsuccessful Ageing: Selected Aspects and Contexts" brings new insights from scientists who scrupulously characterize the complexity of processes that affect the positive and negative conditions of functioning in old age, which is a mosaic of various nuances. Inviting readers to familiarize themselves with the content of the monograph, we would like to thank the reviewers who contributed to the improvement of the quality of the texts and open new fields for participation in further joint publishing projects.

Gerontologia kreatywna - dział gerontologii społecznej postulowany przez Anitȩ Stefańsk¸a} i Martȩ Szabelsk¸a}-Holeksȩ. Docelowo subdyscyplina ta ma zajmować siȩ problematyk¸a} twórczości i kreatywności osób starszych. Gerontologia kreatywna jest przede wszystkim zwi¸a}zana z psychologi¸a} twórczości, a szczególnie z akmeologi¸a} kreatywn¸a}, czyli psychologi¸a} osobowości twórczej człowieka. Gerontologia kreatywna z jednej strony korzysta z wiedzy pochodz¸a}cej z geriatrii, gerontopsychologii, gerontologii eksperymentalnej, gerontosocjologii i geragogiki. Z drugiej strony zaś podstawy gerontologii kreatywnej osadzone s¸a w działach akmeologii kreatywnej, w szczególności w: historii akmeologii kreatywnej, akmeologii kreatywnej działalności zawodowej, akmeologii kreatywnej osobowości, eksperymentalnej akmeologii kreatywnej oraz stosowanej akmeologii kreatywnej. Konceptualizacja teorii gerontologii kreatywnej jest prób¸a zastosowania teorii istniej¸acych już na gruncie psychologii i gerontologii. Gerontologia kreatywna jako nauka multidyscyplinarna ma także korzystać z dorobku socjologii, filozofii, medycyny, biologii, ekonomii, demografii, antropologii społecznej i kultury, pedagogiki społecznej, kultur i twórczości oraz nauk o kulturze i sztuce. ** Creative gerontology - department of social gerontology postulated by Anita Stefańska and Marta Szabelska-Holeksa. Ultimately, this sub-discipline is to deal with the issues of creativity and creativity of older people. Creative gerontology is primarily associated with the psychology of creativity, and especially with creative acmeology, or the psychology of the creative personality of a human being. On the one hand, creative gerontology uses knowledge derived from geriatrics, gerontopsychology, experimental gerontology, gerontosociology and geragogy. On the other hand, the foundations of creative gerontology are embedded in the sections of creative acmeology, in particular in the history of creative acmeology, creative occupational acmeology, creative personality acmeology, experimental creative acmeology and applied creative acmeology. Conceptualization of the theory of creative gerontology is an attempt to apply theories already existing on the basis of psychology and gerontology. Creative gerontology as a multidisciplinary science is also to use the achievements of sociology, philosophy, medicine, biology, economics, demography, social anthropology and culture, social pedagogy, cultures and creativity as well as the sciences of culture and art.