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Arizona

The Arizona teams are supported and funded by the Arizona Community Foundation: www.azfoundation.org

The Arizona Community Foundation (ACF) and its 13 affiliates are a statewide philanthropy and partnership of donors, volunteers, staff, nonprofit organizations and the community working together to address community needs through charitable giving.

A combination of emerging trends and institutional developments encouraged the Arizona Community Foundation to help pioneer the initiative, including the following:

  • Faster growing older and younger populations: Arizona statistics predict there will be as many older people in the state as there are children under 17 by 2030
  • Older adult enclaves: while Arizona was on the forefront of “senior living enclaves” for older adults, this development is becoming increasingly dissatisfying to some older adults as well as some of the cities where they are located.
  • Increased interest in civic engagement: Both youth and older adults are demonstrating an increased interest in civic engagement, yet aging and youth networks tend to work separately on civic issues,
  • Siloed funding: ACF like many funders had one portfolio dedicated to youth and one to older adults. These “silos” mirrored the artificial barriers between youth and adults created in many programs in the communities the ACF serves.
  • Recognition of intergenerational strategies: Intergenerational strategies are increasingly important to policy makers, program designers, philanthropists and residents alike.

Arizona Community Foundation and local sites worked with The Intergenerational Center at Temple University to launch the Communities for All Ages framework and model in 2003. ACF is now drawing on the lessons learned from their first exploratory experience and working with a second set of four sites that will take them through 2013. The sites from the first cycle, the “leadership sites”, have been providing mentorship and feedback to the new sites, as well as valuable insight as to how this model can be adapted and sustained in communities over time.