4-Quarter Lives

On this week’s 4-Quarter Lives Avivah Wittenberg-Cox talks with Nic Palmarini, the Director of the UK National Innovation Centre on Ageing. NICA is based in Newcastle and was launched with £40 million investment from the UK Government and Newcastle University. The Centre's mission is to “add intelligence to ageing and longevity”, allowing the private and public sectors to tackle the opportunities of the longevity economies while reducing inequalities, by developing and bringing to market innovative ideas, business models, services and products which enhance and improve all aspects of life for our ageing societies.  Prior to heading up NICA, Nic was Head of AI for Healthy Ageing at IBM Research, and AI Ethics Lead and Research Manager at the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab, an academic-industry partnership for the responsible advancement of artificial intelligence. His specialty is connecting dots across disciplines to bridge academic and industrial research with real-world applications.Trained in social studies and business communication, he also served as Director of the IBM Human Centric Solution Centre in Paris.  He holds a decade of experience in research on supporting older adults’ autonomy and independence, and leading teams in developing Human Activity Recognition techniques dedicated to older adults based on AI applied to IoT data.Nic is also an author, teacher, applied research scientist and his main areas of research are loneliness as an accelerator of physical and cognitive diseases, ageism, ageing and economic factors, ethics and AI. The work done by his teams have twice been awarded the Computer Honours Award at the United Nations for Aging Initiative and received the Disability Matters – Market Place Award. He is the author of five books and member of several boards included the Scientific Advisory Committee at McMaster Institute for Research on Aging (MIRA), GIMI (Global Management Innovation Institute) and the Scientific Board of Political Sciences and International Relations at Universita’ Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Milan. Nic has been recently appointed as board member of the Humane Technology Lab.Some Useful Links:* National Innovation Centre on Ageing* About Nic Palmarini (website)* Article in Forbes by Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, with Nic Palmarini and Lynne Corner: ‘Ten Steps to Longevity for the Second Billion – Are We Ready?’* Nic’s TED Talk on Ageism* IBM Europe Human Centric Innovation Center Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

On 4-Quarter Lives this week Avivah Wittenberg-Cox talks with Professor Theo Kocken, about his fascinating new film ‘Your Hundred Year Life’. Theo comes to the issue of longevity with a business and academic background. He is professor of Risk Management at VU University Amsterdam, founder of the Anglo-Dutch pension investment & risk management firm Cardano and chairman of the Cardano Development Foundation. He is also an extraordinary professor at NWU University (South Africa). Before founding Cardano in 2000, he worked in the banking sector, including as head of Market Risk at ING and Rabobank.Theo is not, however, your average economist or academic. In addition to writing several books on risk management and pension fund design, he uses alternative media to get his ideas across to a wider and more general audience. Together with Monty Python’s Terry Jones, in 2015 he produced the documentary “Boom Bust Boom” on financial crises and endogenous financial instability. Following this he identified the worldwide increase in longevity as a major issue for individuals and for society and in 2022 released his film ‘Your Hundred Year Life’. This documentary is a mind-blowing representation of the parlous state of old-age provision, all over the world. It mixes personal stories and expert analysis with humour and optimism. Highlighting the challenges for rich and poor countries alike, it argues that it is not too late to rethink the concept of retirement and old age.  Some Relevant Links:* Theo Kocken has generously made a link to his film ‘Your Hundred Year Life’ available free to paying subscribers to Avivah’s weekly ‘Elderberries’ blog. To access it, please send an email to queries@20-first.com, to receive access and password details.* Trailer to ‘Your Hundred Year Life: * Website to ‘Your Hundred Year Life’.* Website of the Cardano Group.* Cardano Development website. Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

The guest on this week’s 4-Quarter Lives is Ambassador Luis Gallegos who, at 76, is as active and engaged as he has ever been in his long and extremely distinguished career. He is advocating for the adoption, by the United Nations, of an international Convention for the Rights of Older People. This follows his role as president of the U.N. committee that drafted the U.N.’s Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the first human rights treaty of the 21st century. He was also an elected member on the U.N.’s Committee on the Convention Against Torture, president of the advisory committee of the Institute of Public Policy & Disability, and former board member of Special Olympics International. During 2022 he was a Fellow of Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative, which is where he and Avivah Wittenberg-Cox first met.An Ecuadorian diplomat, Luis is the former Ecuadorian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility. Previously he served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, and Permanent Representative of Ecuador to the United Nations in New York and Geneva. He is currently Chair of Trustees of UNITAR, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, and Chairman of the Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies. The Congress of Ecuador has honored him twice for his work in human rights and for his leadership in the promotion and protection of human rights of persons with disabilities. Ambassador Gallegos is also a recipient of the Justice for All Disabilities Rights Award. Prior to his appointment to the United Nations, Gallegos served as Ecuador's Ambassador to the United States from 2005 to 2011. He previously served as Ecuador's Head of Mission to Bulgaria from 1985 to 1989; Ambassador to El Salvador from 1994 to 1997; and Ambassador to Australia, among other positions. He holds a Juris Doctor Degree from the Central University of Ecuador, as well as a Masters of Arts Degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy of Tufts University. He is married and has two children.Some Useful Links:* Wikipedia – Luis Gallegos Chiriboga* United Nations Institute for Training and Research - UNITAR* The Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs – G3ict* Strengthening Older People’s Rights: Towards a UN Convention (2010)* Article on a Convention on the Rights of Older Persons - Wikipedia* Advanced Leadership Initiative, Harvard - ALI Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of 4-Quarter Lives, Avivah Wittenberg-Cox talks with Charlotte Japp. Early in her career, Charlotte noticed a huge gap between the 20-somethings she worked with and baby boomers like her parents. Older workers had decades of experience, but were forced to retire or start secondary careers due to ageist hiring trends. Her friends and colleagues wanted career mentorship, while her parents and their friends were looking for new skills and trend reports to stay competitive in their careers.From this realisation Charlotte created CIRKEL, a platform connecting a community of professionals ages 20-70+ who connect for two-way career support and mentorship. CIRKEL also works with businesses to unite the 5-generation workforce. Charlotte has promoted this thinking at conferences around the world about the future of ageing, and currently serves on the advisory council for Stanford’s Center for Longevity.In her parallel professional career, Charlotte is a creative leader who specializes in content development (video, copywriting, social content), events/conferences, community building, and brand partnership. She is currently Head of Platform at ff Venture Capital, a seed stage fund investing in FinTech, AI, B2B SaaS, and autonomy. In her role, she oversees all of ffVC’s brand marketing, as well as portfolio support for its 90+ portfolio companies in the US, Canada, Israel, and Central & Eastern Europe. Previously Charlotte has held roles at VICE Media, Live Nation, TikTok, and several startups. She graduated from Georgetown University with honors.Some Useful Links:* For more about CIRKEL, go to www.cirkel.world* Charlotte’s creative portfolio:  www.charlottejapp.com/* For ff Venture Capital: www.ffvc.com  Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

Roberta Katz was involved in helping to establish the Distinguished Careers Institute program at Stanford University and has been a DCI advisor for many years.  She is a Senior Research Scholar at Stanford’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) and co-author of the book Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age (University of Chicago Press, 2021). In this podcast she and Avivah Wittenberg-Cox discuss the book, which describes the findings from a multi-year, interdisciplinary study of the behaviors and values of American and British Gen Zers and analyses the historical, technological, and social trends that have influenced them.Roberta holds a Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from Columbia University as well as a JD from the University of Washington. She was in private law practice before becoming the General Counsel and Senior Vice President of McCaw Cellular Corporation (now AT&T Wireless) and, subsequently, Netscape Communications Corporation. Between July 2004 and September 2017, she served as Associate Vice President for Strategic Planning at Stanford. She has been deeply involved in the facilitation of a variety of interdisciplinary research initiatives at Stanford, and is a member of various Stanford advisory boards. She is also a member of the Boards of Trustees of the Exploratorium (SF) and the National Parks Conservation Association (DC).Some Useful Links:* Roberta’s book is Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age. It is by Roberta Katz, Sarah Ogilvie, Jane Shaw and Linda Woodhead, and is available from Amazon here (USA) or here (UK).* Roberta also mentioned Parenting for a Digital Future, by Sonia Livingstone and Alicia Blum-Ross (Oxford University Press, 2020), about democratization of the family.* Distinguished Careers Institute, Stanford University Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

Dr Vijeth Iyengar is the guest in this week’s 4-Quarter Lives, with Avivah Wittenberg-Cox. Dr Iyengar is Director of Global Aging at the International Office of AARP – the American Association of Retired People. He leads cutting-edge research on global aging issues, including financial resilience, health security, the human rights of older persons, and their social connections, and cultivates relationships and strategic alliances to promote AARP’s vision to serve older adults everywhere.A cognitive neuroscientist by training, before joining AARP, Vijeth served three US Government administrations in a variety of roles, including as Brain Health Lead and Technical Advisor to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aging at the Administration for Community Living, as a Policy Advisor to the 4th U.S. Chief Technology Officer at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, as co-lead coordinator of the Older Adult working group for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Healthy People 2020/2030 initiative, and as lead author of the 2018-2022 U.S. country report for the Fourth Review and Appraisal of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing. Additionally he completed a secondment at the Pan American Health Organization’s Mental Health and Substance Use Unit where he chronicled member-state progress towards indicators found in the 2015 Strategy and Plan of Action on Dementias in Older Persons.Originally from Louisiana, Vijeth attended Cornell and Tulane Universities, and received his masters and doctoral degrees from Duke University. Among other recognitions, Dr. Iyengar was a Presidential Management Fellow, a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow, and selected as a 2020 Aspen Ideas Festival Health Fellow. Amongst other contributions, he is a mentor for the Techstars Future of Longevity Accelerator.Some Useful Links:* The AARP International website is a rich resource for information and discussion of global ageing issues: https://www.aarpinternational.org* Report: Achieving Equitable Healthy Aging in Low and Middle-Income Countries: The Aging Readiness and Competitiveness Report 4.0* The Journal of AARP International: https://www.aarpinternational.org/the-journal* AARP Report: Building Equity in Longevity* AARP website: https://www.aarp.org* TechStars Future of Longevity Accelerator Program Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

Alistair McQueen is head of savings and retirement at Aviva, the UK’s largest general insurance company and a major life and pensions provider. Aviva also has a significant presence in Canada and Ireland. He leads Aviva’s pensions business, helping six million people save for and live in retirement, as well as representing Aviva in the media and with government. He is also a member of the Association of British Insurers’ retirement working group; the Money and Pensions Service long-term savings challenge group; the Department for Work & Pensions Mid-life-MOT board; the Business in the Community Age Leadership Team; and sits on the advisory board of Bravestarts – a social enterprise with the goal of supporting a fuller working life.Some Useful Links:* Aviva – How Long will Retirement Be?* Aviva Mid-Life MOT app.* UK Government Mid-Life MOT* Brave Starts – new opportunities for over 45s Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

Ryan Frederick is the Chief Executive of Here, a strategic consultancy and consumer platform focused on creating housing options and helping people make good decisions about place in the context of healthy aging. A thought leader, speaker, author, developer and strategy consultant, he has advised organizations internationally, including Fortune 500 companies, global institutional investors, leading health businesses and housing developers and operators.Ryan spreads the message about how to think through where and how you want to live in later life through keynote talks, workshops, videos, blogs, online assessments and his book, Right Place, Right Time. He particularly advocates the benefits of inter-generational housing. He is on the National Advisory Board for the School of Nursing at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, a past member of the Bipartisan Policy Center task force on health and housing and an Encore.org Public Voices Fellow. A graduate of Princeton and Stanford, he lives in Austin, Texas with his family after previously living for long stretches on both the East and West Coast of the US.Some Useful Links:* Ryan’s website: www.here.life* Ryan’s book Right Place Right Time – The Ultimate Guide to Choosing a Home for the Second Half of Life: Amazon UK or Amazon.com* The Right Place Assessment Quiz Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

On 4-Quarter Lives this week Avivah Wittenberg-Cox talks with Catherine Foot, Director of Phoenix Insights. Catherine is a research and policy expert in ageing and longevity, with over 20 years of experience in the field. Phoenix Insights is a think tank set up by the Phoenix Group (one of the UK’s leading pensions and savings groups) in 2021, to conduct research and stimulate debate on how society should respond to the possibilities of longer lives. Its research examines issues of financial security, work, and learning and skills, as well as health and care, homes and communities.Before joining Phoenix, from 2015-21 Catherine was Director of Evidence at the Centre for Ageing Better. The Centre’s aim is to make ageing better a reality for everyone, challenging ageism and promoting age-friendly employment and homes.Catherine has also held senior roles with The King’s Fund and Cancer Research UK. She holds degrees from University of Cambridge and University College London.Some Relevant Links:* Phoenix Insights Website* Phoenix Insights Blogs* Report: Beyond the Great Retirement – Understanding and Tackling Economic Inactivity Among the Over 50s.* Report: Retirement Preparations Among Different Ethnic Groups* Report: Caught in a Gap – the role of Government and Employers in Enabling Women to Build Better Pensions* The Centre for Ageing Better  Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe

In this week’s 4-Quarter Lives, Avivah Wittenberg-Cox talks with Eleanor Mills. Eleanor is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Noon, which she created in 2021 in the UK as a resource for women at the mid-point – the Noon – of their lives. an online media platform and community for women at the mid-point – the noon – of their lives. As she argues, "Midlife is when those dreams we had when we were young but put aside to earn a living or raise a family can finally be revisited; it’s never too late to be what you wanted to be." In this episode she tells Avivah her thinking behind the concept, and what Noon offers. She has also coined the term Queenagers – the later life counterpart to teenagers – and is currently writing a book on the opportunities she sees for women at this stage of life.Eleanor is an award-winning editor, writer and broadcaster. She worked for the Sunday Times for 23 years as Editorial Director, Editor of the Sunday Times Magazine, and as a columnist and interviewer (interrogating everyone from Mikhail Gorbachev to Sheryl Sandberg and Theresa May). As Chair of Women in Journalism (2014-21) she argued that the media must be a true mirror, not the distorting lens that happens if decision-makers are not diverse. She has been a trustee of the Society of Editors, and a board member of Reporters Sans Frontieres. Her previous publications include Cupcakes and Kalashnikovs: 100 Years of the Best Journalism by Women.  She lives in London and has two daughters.Some Useful Links:* Noon: https://www.noon.org.uk* Eleanor’s story about how Noon began: Click here.* Eleanor’s bio: Click here.* Eleanor’s Twitter: Click here. Get full access to Elderberries at elderberries.substack.com/subscribe