In yesterday’s Australian newspapers we were treated to headlines on the impact of an aging Baby Boom generation.
The Australian gave us the headline,
“Golden Outlook for Boomers“.
The Courier Mail, (Brisbane) “Greying Nation Facing Huge Bill“.
The Age (Melbourne) gave us “Cost of Aging 40 Years Hence: $2.2 Trillion”
The Sydney Morning Herald gave us “Growing fears over booming aged numbers“.
It’s the media response to yesterday’s release of a draft research report, “Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia” from the Australian Government Productivity Commission. The report presents the initial findings of the commissioned study, Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia, which is examining the productivity, labour supply and fiscal implications of likely demographic trends over the next 40 years.
All this links in closely with the analsyis provided by Jackson Carroll and Wade Clark Roof in their book, “Bridging Divided Worlds”. In their concluding chapter the authors draw on the work of Ken Dytchtwald of Agewave, a firm created to guide Fortune 500 companies and government groups in product/service development for boomers and mature adults. In his book, “Age Power” Ken points his readers to the increased longevity of the Baby Boomers. The Baby Boomers, sometimes referred to as the narcissistic generation, will be hoping to have the best deal they can get. With a larger proportion of elders we will need new ground rules for intergenerational relations in finances, medical services and care giving. He says that we are being given an opportunity for extended sharing, mentoring, mentoring across age & generational lines. If we don’t grasp that opportunity we must face the alternative: Age Wars.
“Our social institutions and policymakers must learn a new and complex skill: how to manage a multigenerational melting pot”.
That’s another confirmation that we need to be training our leaders to work on inter-generational relationships. This is not just a marketing exercise. What we’re looking at here is the health of our communities.
More on the final chapter of “Bridging Divided Worlds” tomorrow.