Resource Library

New Frontiers for Funding provides guidance specifically for grantmakers supporting rural areas and how working on rural aging issues can increase the impact of many different kinds of philanthropies.

A fact sheet outlines how congress and philanthropy can work together to strengthen the Older Americans Act to better meet the social needs that COVID-19 revealed and match funding levels to the growth of the older population and the true cost of aging in America.

One in three older Americans dies with dementia, which is an umbrella term for a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with activities of daily living. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause, accounting for an estimated 60-80% of all cases of dementia. Foundations and other funders have joined federal and local governments in supporting research and implementation of many different types of dementia-related services. 

This guide outlines the wide range of grant-funded efforts to support both family caregivers and the paid direct care workforce, opportunities for funders to get involved, and other sectors also now focusing on caregiving.

Actionable ideas for philanthropy to fuel efforts to recognize, assist, include, support, and engage family caregivers. 

Learn the fundamentals of the Multisector Plans for Aging movement and see how funders can and should get involved to help advance this essential work.

This guide takes a deep dive into the topic of impact investing and highlights funders across the GIA network and beyond who are leveraging impact investments to create healthier, more age-integrated communities.

Social isolation is an epidemic in the United States, affecting two-thirds of older adults and three-quarters of young people (as reported during COVID). Social isolation is linked to depression, poor sleep, and impaired immunity. It increases the risks of dementia by 50 percent, stroke by 32 percent, and coronary heart disease by 29 percent, and significantly increases the risk of premature death from all causes.

This guide is intended to give GIA members and other funders an understanding of impact investing — specifically within the philanthropic context — by defining key terms and sharing examples of how it is already being used. 

Age-Friendly Health Systems aim to follow an essential set of evidence-based practices; cause no harm; and align with what matters to older adults and their caregivers. This issue brief provides background on the need and an update on a new movement that seeks to transform how our healthcare system approaches the care of older adults.

Communication Best Practices: Reframing Aging Initiative Guide to Telling a More Complete Story of Aging offers valuable recommendations and research-based rationales when crafting presentations, press releases, academic papers, letters to the editor, websites, publications, consumer materials, speeches, and other communications.

This report summarizes key issues relevant to understanding complex care and offers resources and case studies for funders interested in entering the field or deepening their existing work. It also profiles funding opportunities, explores existing models, and shares philanthropic lessons learned.

This report from Grantmakers In Aging, seeks to capture a range of promising approaches to aging in community being used globally.  
 

Our 2019 funding guide, Aging Positively: Bringing HIV/AIDS into the Aging Services Mainstream: An Introduction for Funders, highlights the diverse experiences of older people living with HIV/AIDS and offers actionable ideas for philanthropies of all kinds to improve care and quality of life. 

​Honoring the Denver Principles and MIPA (Meaningful Involvement of People with HIV/AIDS), GIA also recorded a series of interviews with older people living with HIV/AIDS and produced the following videos reflecting on their lived experience.

Evidence-based programs (EBPs) are essential for promoting healthy aging and wellness in older adults. These programs address challenges such as chronic conditions, falls, physical inactivity, and behavioral health issues, which can impact health, well-being, and independence. 

This guide examines the crisis caused by opioids in rural communities, particularly the impact on the lives of many older individuals, potential solutions, and initiatives that governments, communities and funders are implementing.

Elders of color and LGBT elders face significant disparities in health and health care access, economic security, housing, employment, community support, and more.

For older people whose social networks are dwindling, arts and culture give opportunities to keep socially, civically, and mentally active in their communities. The arts provide a symbolic and emotionally expressive communication system for elders with cognitive limitations, allowing them to engage with their care partners and the larger community.

Through key informant interviews, focus groups, and a two-day leadership summit GIA distilled best practices in sustainable age-friendly communities work that resulted in the framework presented in this document.