Image: John Piggott AO
Back in 2013, a then very newly funded CEPAR organised an international conference focused on population ageing. It was an unusual academic event in that it had a range of disciplines represented. I was very nervous that people would not come, because only such a small part of the conference would directly relate to their discipline, whatever that might be.
In fact, it was a great success. We were over-subscribed with submitted papers, and the keynotes were terrific. Participants joined sessions outside their disciplines and sometimes even contributed.
Now in 2022, population ageing is a topic more widely recognised as requiring a multi-disciplinary approach, and the issue is in everyday discussion. So next year, we are planning a second international conference on population ageing, on 3-5 July 2023 at UNSW Sydney.
Keynote speakers will be drawn from multiple disciplines and representatives from government, industry, community and academe will share their perspectives on key topics during a series of panel sessions to be spread through the conference. The deadline for submitting papers and posters is early next month. Contributions are invited on all topics related to the conference theme and we expect a focus on macro-demographics dynamics and population ageing policy, including especially the impacts of migration; decision-making, expectations and cognitive ageing; organisations and the mature workforce; the social determinants of successful ageing; and retirement policy. We encourage Honours, Masters and PhD students as well as early career researchers to participate and will be offering limited travel support, especially to good emerging scholars from low-income countries and developing countries.
This time around, I am confident of generating interest in the conference. Perceptions about the importance of demographic shift have moved on since 2013!