Introduction: Ageing in the Rural North

Naskali, Päivi; Harbison, Joan; Begum, Suraiya

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-20603-1_1

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 6 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Aging rural communities internationally are persistently challenged to support their older residents most often through an increased reliance on volunteers and volunteer-based programs (Davies, Lockstone-Binney, & Holmes, 2018;Walsh & O'Shea, 2008;Winterton & Warburton, 2021). Indeed, rural aging scholarship over the past two decades has highlighted the pivotal role of volunteers and volunteer-based programs (or "voluntarism") in mitigating the implications associated with population aging (Kaye, 2021;Keating, 2008;Naskali, Harbison, & Begum, 2019;Scharf, Walsh, & O'Shea, 2016;Skinner, Winterton, & Walsh, 2021). A critical component of this work has been demonstrating and delineating how voluntarism is essential to the fabric of rural communities and the lives of rural residents (Lovell, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rural Aging during COVID-19: A Case Study of Older Voluntarism

Colibaba

Skinner²,

Russell

2021

Can. J. Aging

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

During large-scale crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the precarity of older people and older volunteers can become exacerbated, especially in under-serviced rural regions and small towns. To understand how the pandemic has affected “older voluntarism”, this article presents a case study of three volunteer-based programs in rural Ontario, Canada. Interviews with 34 volunteers and administrators reveal both challenging and growth-oriented experiences of volunteers and the programs during the first wave of COVID-19. The findings demonstrate the vulnerability and resiliency of older volunteers and the adaptability and uncertainty of programs that rely on older voluntarism, as the community and its older residents navigate pandemic-related changes. The article advances a framework for understanding the pandemic’s impacts on older voluntarism in relation to personal, program, and community dimensions of sustainable rural aging. Further, it explores ways that older volunteers, organizations that depend on them, and communities experiencing population aging can persevere post-pandemic.

show abstract