Rhea Braunwalder

In the framework of the Japanese concept and project Ibasho (founder: Dr. Emi Kiyota), integrative, local caring communities are developed, launched, and maintained together with and by older adults.

VIRAS stands for ‘Visually Impaired Robot-Assisted Shopping’. The interdisciplinary project aims to develop and test an autonomous shopping cart for blind and visually impaired people. At the same time, its potential and further development possibilities for use by older people or people with limited mobility when shopping are being assessed. To this end, the IAF team is conducting a needs analysis based on written questionnaires, individual interviews and focus groups.

"Alte Sennerei" Tenna is an innovative, civic and social housing project in the Safiental (GR).

Against the background of the classification of persons aged 65 and over as a risk group in the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Institute for Research on Ageing investigated how persons in this age group experienced the initial months of the pandemic and what their subjective experiences of ageism were during this period.

Robots are increasingly being used to assist older people.

Against the background of a significant increase in internet use by older people (65+), also on mobile devices, the project addresses the question of what effects the use of WhatsApp has on the subjectively experienced quality and the shaping of social relationships of users aged 65+.

A needs assessment is to be carried out to find out how community residents aged 65+ would like to live and reside and what needs arise in this context.