Hugh O’Connor, head of the expansive and successful age friendly cities and counties initiative in Ireland, will be delivering a plenary address at the IAHSA/ACSAjoint conference in Perth, Australia August 31 – September 1. Ireland was the first EU country to commit to a nationwide age-friendly initiative. The goal: make Ireland a truly great place in which to grow old.

The voice of older people is at the heart of the program and they have spoken – above all, they want to be safe and secure and they want to get where they need to go. Age-friendly programs are now in place in 24 cities and counties with 3 more on the drawing board. Hugh O’Connor will share the secret to his success as CEO of Age Friendly Ireland. He was worked for 15 years in social policy, research and consulting. His published work has focused on marginalized and at-risk groups in Irish society.

To learn more about this plenary session or other session speakers at the Global Ageing Conference in Perth, visit our conference website.