Synthesising the social capital and ageing-friendly communities literature, this paper describes how efforts to make communities more ageing-friendly can promote social inclusion among older adults. Making existing communities more ageing-friendly involves physical and social infrastructure changes that enable older adults to pursue lifelong activities, meet their basic needs, maintain significant relationships, participate in the community in personally and socially meaningful ways, and develop new interests and sources of fulfilment. Such efforts can enhance bonding, bridging and linking capital, and thereby promote social inclusion. The authors discuss the link between ageing-friendly communities and social inclusion, and provide examples of programmes with potential to change existing communities into ones that promote the social inclusion of older adults.

While a number of organizations and government entities have encouraged the development of more "age-friendly" environments, to date there has been limited research linking these environment features to elder outcomes. Using a representative sample of older adults living in Detroit, this study examined the association between age-friendly environment factors and self-rated health. Results indicated that access to health care, social support, and community engagement were each associated with better self-rated health, while neighborhood problems were associated with poorer self-rated health. Moreover, individual-level income and education no longer predicted self-rated health once age-friendly environment factors were taken into account. These findings highlight the need for more research documenting the effects of age-friendly environments, particularly across diverse contexts and populations.

Results suggest that successful advocacy strategies for local government adoption include facilitating the involvement of older residents, targeting key decision makers within government, emphasizing the financial benefits to the city, and focusing on cities whose aging residents are vulnerable to disease and disability.

Decision Editor: Rachel Pruchno, PhDPurpose: Villages and Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) Supportive Service Programs (NORC programs) are among the most prominent community-based models for promoting aging in place. To advance systematic understanding of their development, this study examined how these models have been implemented nationally and the models' similarities and differences. Design and Methods: A survey of program leaders representing 69 Villages and 62 NORC programs was conducted from January to June of 2012. Bivariate analyses compared measures of the initiatives' services/activities, beneficiaries, service delivery processes, and funding sources. Results: Village members were reportedly more likely than NORC program participants to be younger, to be less functionally impaired, to be more economically secure, and to reside in higher socioeconomic communities. Reflecting these differences in populations served, NORC programs reported offering more traditional health and social services, had more paid staff, and relied more on government funding than Villages. Implications: Findings indicate that Villages and NORC programs both aim to promote aging in place by offering a diverse range of supports and services to older adults within a locally defined geographic area. Nevertheless, key differences were found in the means through which they seek to achieve these aims, as well as the populations likely to benefit from their efforts. These differences raise questions regarding the models' inclusivity, sustainability, expansion, and effectiveness and have implications for community aging in place initiatives more broadly.

These findings suggest that racial and ethnic disparities in caregiver service use found at the bivariate level are attributable to covarying predisposing, enabling, and need factors. Further research and theoretical development are suggested to clarify the impact of sociocultural factors on caregiver service use.