CCSU Study Abroad students visit OPENspace

Students from Central Connecticut State University’s Study Abroad program visited OPENspace earlier this month to learn more about global aging and age-friendly initiatives in Scotland.

OPENspace Research Fellow, Dr Caroline Pearce, presented initial findings from the ACRC study, ‘Environmental support for flourishing in older age: an exploration using a personal projects approach’, and Dr Scott Ogletree provided an overview of the Landscape and Wellbeing program at ECA and his work on GroundsWell.

The students, who had earlier explored urban areas within Scotland to note the accessibility of public transportation, availability of green spaces, and the cultural attitude toward older adults, had positive feedback on the impact of OPENspace research:

“It helped broaden my outlook on how the physical environment can directly impact people’s health and well being in ways that I hadn’t thought about before”

“Seeing that even the smallest activity can make older adults feel so much better just solidified the idea that the world needs to do better, not just for older adults, but for everyone.”