Thursday Three - 02 October 2025 

 

  • Congratulations to AAG Research Trust 2025 RM Gibson and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander grant awardees!
  • Reflections of the recent WA Division event: Local Voices in Ageing Research, Policy & Practice
  • AAG Challenging Ageism SIG Presents: Age as a Proxy

 

This week the world marked the 35th UN International Day of Older Persons (1 October) with a focus on older people as powerful agents of change and the important role they play in building resilient and equitable societies.

Read the full 2025 IDOP statement from the United Nations. 


 

Congratulations to AAG Research Trust 2025 RM Gibson and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander grant awardees!

It has been a bumper year with another huge influx of applications to the AAG Research Trust! Today we are pleased to advise the 2025 grant recipients of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Grant and the RM Gibson Program.

The AAG Research Trust has a specific commitment to funding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led projects that relate to ageing and its impacts for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities. This specific grant opportunity supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander early career researchers and practitioners working across the multidisciplinary field of ageing to build their skills and capacity, and develop evidence-based knowledge about ageing with an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspective and standpoint to inform policy and program development.

The RM Gibson Program, set up to honour the memory of foundation member and former AAG President, Dr Richard (Dick) Maxwell Gibson, targets the next generation of researchers in ageing, awarding projects that work to improve the experience of ageing through innovation in research, policy and/or practice. The RM Gibson program again attracted an outstanding pool of over 50 applications.

The Research Trust congratulates all applicants to the above programs, whose submissions are a testament to the diversity, purpose, and passion of AAG’s membership.

The awardees are:

Aboriginal and Torres Strit Islander Grant

Caleb Rivers, The University of Western Australia, for the project: Exploring older Aboriginal People's quality of life through the application of the Good Spirit, Good Life framework

RM Gibson Program

Minh Ngoc Pham, Swinburne University of Technology, for the project: Development of a Web-Based Problem-Solving Intervention for Older Carers

Johannes Schwabe, Registry of Senior Australians (ROSA) Research Centre (SAHMRI), for the project: Developing a prognostic risk-model (tool) for entry to residential aged care

Stephen Quick, La Trobe University (Northern Health), for the project: Exploring Stakeholder Perspectives on Virtual Emergency Care for People Living with Dementia: A Qualitative Study

The below grant has been awarded through the AAG’s valued partnership with the Dementia Australia Research Foundation (DARF):

Rhys Mantell, University of New South Wells, for the project: ASCAPE at the Margins: User evaluation of a game-based cognitive assessment for older marginalised Australians

We congratulate the above awardees and look forward to their findings.

Further AAG Research Trust announcements, including outcomes for the Strategic Innovation and Hal Kendig Research Development programs are expected 30 October 2025.

Reflections of the recent WA Division event: Local Voices in Ageing Research, Policy & Practice

On Friday, 29 August, the AAG WA Division, in partnership with Curtin University’s enAble Institute, one of AAG's Collaborative Research Centres (CRC), held the Local Voices in Ageing: Research, Policy & Practice full-day conference, bringing together researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and community members to explore key issues shaping ageing in Western Australia.

A special thank you to Barbara Blundell, WA Division Chair along with the WA Division Committee. Barbara’s leadership and commitment were pivotal in organising what was clearly a successful and deeply engaging event. Everyone’s efforts helped ensure that the day not only ran smoothly but also delivered rich conversations and genuine connections.

Among the topics covered were Aboriginal health and ageing, digital innovation, end-of-life preparation, culture & care, aged care workforce development, and building connected communities.

The program featured presentations from several outstanding panellists and speakers, including early-career researchers and experts in public health, anthropology, gerontology, nursing, and allied health. Attendees also heard from Aboriginal health practitioners, physiotherapists, academics, and policy leaders about lived experiences, collaborative models of care, and how new research can be translated into practice.

If you missed any of the sessions or want to revisit them, members can access the full recording and individual sessions in AAG's online library.


AAG Challenging Ageism SIG Presents: Age as a Proxy

Age is often used as a shortcut for decision-making in health and social services, limiting access to care and support. This webinar will explore how age is used as a proxy in key service sectors such as housing, disability, and community care, and the consequences this has for equity.

Wednesday, 15 October 2025

12:00 pm to 1:30 pm AEDT

AAG Members free - ANZSGM, NZAG & GCA Members free with code

 ($50 non-AAG members)

Facilitated by A/Prof Rachel Ambagtsheer and Dr Bethany Wilton-Harding (co-convenors of AAG’s Challenging Ageing SIG), along with Dr Marlene Krasovitsky, renowned anti-ageism advocate and campaigner, you will hear from experts on ageing, including Age Discrimination Commissioner, Robert Fitzgerald AM, and David Panter, Chief Executive, Minda Incorporated, with a special presentation from Alison Rochford, a carer with lived experience supporting her husband, Rod.

Register today to gain insights into the impacts of age-based policies and learn strategies to challenge ageism and support fairer, more inclusive systems.

Speakers and facilitators from top left: Robert Fitzgerald AM; A/Prof Rachel Ambagtsheer; Dr Bethany Wilton-Harding; Alison and Rod Rochford; David Panter; and Dr Marlene Krasovitsky