The Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging's Aging Insights newsletter features aging-related research, education, and community initiatives that involve or may be of interest to UCalgary campus community members. | | |
This past year, the Centre on Aging made major strides in creating a more age-inclusive campus by beginning to translate findings from our age-friendly university assessment into meaningful action. This includes leading a project to enhance aging-related content in undergraduate education, ensuring students gain the knowledge and skills needed to effectively support an aging population.
We also continued to demonstrate our commitment to advancing aging-related research by supporting 37 projects across seven disciplines. Our return to the Foothills Campus deepened our connections across the University and enhanced our impact on aging research and education.
We are excited to carry this momentum forward in
the year ahead.
| | Not just a round of golf: The co-creation of an inclusive golf program and participants’ experiences and program outcomes | | | | Individuals with dementia and their care partners often experience barriers to being physically active and socially connected, both of which are important for well-being. To help address these barriers, the City of Calgary developed Fore! The Love of Golf, a golf program for people with dementia and their care partners to participate in together. A research team from UCalgary, led by Dr. Meghan McDonough in the Faculty of Kinesiology, studied the co-creation of the golf program, participants’ experiences, and program outcomes. | | |
Many participants with dementia felt empowered by the opportunity to golf again and enjoyed connecting with others they could relate to. While some felt nervous about their golf skills or experienced challenges when the program did not fully align with their needs or goals, they still described the overall experience as very positive.
Care partners found that support from staff and volunteers helped create a safe, welcoming environment and offered a much-needed break from some of their caregiving responsibilities. They also received emotional support through meaningful social connections, and found validation and insight by seeing how others navigated similar dementia-related challenges.
Most participants were retired and all were straight couples, where the husband exhibited moderate cognitive impairments and the wife had a relatively high level of caregiving responsibility. This suggests the program may have been particularly attractive to those with moderate levels of dementia.
| | Informed by insights from this research, the City of Calgary developed a toolkit for recreational programs for individuals with dementia. They also expanded their program offerings for people with dementia to include gentle fitness and yoga classes, in addition to continuing their golf program. | | At the Limits of Care: Gendered Work and Stories that Matter | | |
For author and UCalgary assistant professor of sociology Janna Klostermann, reaching her limits and resigning from care work felt like a crisis of self. In the aftermath of this upheaval, this is the book she needed to write.
Drawing on in-depth life history interviews with women ages 27 to 78 in Ontario, Canada, Klostermann enacts a “counter politics of care” approach that centres untold and lesser-told stories of care work. She pushes readers to rethink gendered power dynamics, question prevailing tropes of care, and imagine more equitable, emancipatory futures.
At the Limits of Care is available for pre-order now!
Indiebookstores.ca - Available here
Indigo.ca - Available here
University of Toronto - Available here
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July 28, 2025
Worried about Alzheimer's? Start walking, according to a new 10-year study
Read more
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June 25, 2025
Scholarship invests in Indigenous students - and keeps UCalgary retirees connected
Read more
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June 20, 2025
'Nothing threatening about it': U of C study explores how robots could address social isolation in seniors
Read more
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June 20, 2025
Class of 2025: Continuing education graduates prove it's never too late to start something new
Read more
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June 17, 2025
Jayna Holroyd-Leduc re-appointed department head, Department of Medicine
Read more
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New Frontiers in Research Fund: Exploration 2025
RSO internal deadline: August 12, 2025 - 9:00 a.m.
Learn more
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CIHR Project Grant: Fall 2025
RSO internal deadline: August 13, 2025 - 6:00 p.m.
Learn more
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September 2025 SSHRC Partnership Engage Grants
RSO detailed review deadline: September 1, 2025 - 4:00 p.m.
Learn more
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2025 SSHRC Insight Grants
RSO detailed review deadline: September 17, 2025 - 4:00 p.m.
Learn more
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RTOERO Foundation Grants
Letter of intent deadline: September 19, 2025
Full application deadline: October 24, 2025
Learn more
If interested in the RTOERO opportunity, contact the CSM Development & Alumni Office for more details and to submit an application. Contact: Lindsay Bureaux, lindsay.bureaux@ucalgary.ca
| | Visit the UCalgary database for more research funding opportunities: | | | |
How to Write a Most Significant Contributions Statement
The three major federal funding agencies (CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC) will be gradually transitioning to a new narrative-style CV for competitions. A key component of this format is a 'most significant contributions' statement, which allows you to tell a compelling story about the value and impact of your research.
To support researchers in writing this statement, the Knowledge to Impact team has developed a guide.
| | To gain practical support and insights on how to tell your research story, register for their webinar on August 27. | | | |
2025 Undergraduate Summer Student Research Symposium
August 18, 2025 | Clara Christie Theatre & HRIC Atrium, Health Sciences Centre, Foothills
Please join us for the 2025 Undergraduate Summer Student Research Symposium, hosted by the Centre on Aging, Centre for Health Informatics, O’Brien Institute for Public Health, and W21C. This event includes keynote speakers and undergraduate student poster presentations. Register to attend the symposium through the link below.
Register here
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International Federation on Ageing Conference
September 9-12, 2025 | Cape Town, South Africa
Learn more
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Neurodegeneration in Aging Conference 2025
October 15, 2025 | Edmonton, AB
Learn more
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Canadian Conference on Dementia
October 16-18, 2025 | Calgary, AB
Learn more
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AGE-WELL Annual Conference
October 22-23, 2025 | Montreal, QC
Learn more
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Canadian Association on Gerontology Annual Scientific Meeting
October 23-25, 2025 | Montreal, QC
Learn more
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Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting
November 12-15, 2025 | Boston, USA
Late breaking abstracts due August 21
Learn more
| | University of Calgary Retirees Association (UCRA): Fall Speaker Series | | |
Everyone is welcome—you do not need to be a UCRA member to attend. All events are available both in person and online.
What is needed to defend our Arctic sovereignty?
September 10, 2025 | MT 735
Engineering tomorrow: Artificial intelligence and the smart city revolution
October 8, 2025 | Engineering Bldg, Block G, Room 207
One health: What are the risks of transmission of disease from animals to humans?
November 19, 2025 | Engineering Bldg, Block G, Room 207
Want to attend online?
Use the following Zoom link and passcode: https://ucalgary.zoom.us/j/98212498606?pwd=3v6aXD7H3QUH4wwiaEMkZlpxfr5xzc.1
Passcode: 228056
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Ridesharing apps get simplified for seniors
July 14, 2025
Listen here
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'It's like you're in heaven': Seniors rejoice over a specialized bike they say gives them freedom
July 11, 2025
Watch here
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Toronto seniors want to bike, study shows, and advoacates want the city to help them get riding
July 8, 2025
Read more
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WHO Commission on Social Connection Releases New Report
The WHO Commission’s landmark report on Social Connection calls attention to the widespread impact of isolation and loneliness on public health and society. It urges immediate, cross-sector action to elevate social health and offers scalable solutions to build a more connected and resilient world.
Learn more
| | News to share? We would love to learn about your research, an award you received, a grant you received, or an event you are attending. Please send us your content! | | | |
The Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging is an interdisciplinary, cross-faculty hub at the University of Calgary, with a mission to foster innovations that improve the health and well-being of older adults by catalyzing connections and collaborations through research and education. Our vision is to achieve optimal health and well-being for older adults.
The University of Calgary, located in the heart of Southern Alberta, both acknowledges and pays tribute to the traditional territories of the peoples of Treaty 7, which include the Blackfoot Confederacy (comprised of the Siksika, the Piikani, and the Kainai First Nations), the Tsuut’ina First Nation, and the Stoney Nakoda (including Chiniki, Bearspaw, and Goodstoney First Nations). The City of Calgary is also home to the Métis Nation of Alberta (Districts 5 and 6).
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