| How Men and Women Give Around Retirement
For years, economic studies have shown that people generally reduce their overall spending when they retire. But what about charitable giving? How does retirement affect philanthropy? Does this differ for women and men? The Women's Philanthropy Institute's latest report is the first-known scholarly research to explore how retirement affects charitable giving. It finds that while most households decrease their overall spending around retirement, they generally maintain charitable giving levels — but key gender differences exist. As the number of retirees continues to grow rapidly—10,000 Baby Boomers will turn 65 every day through 2030, and those over 65 now represent 15 percent of the total population—it’s critical for people interested in philanthropy to understand more about how women and men give around retirement. This report gets the conversation started. This study is the first known research to examine how retirement affects charitable giving. It looks at single men, single women, and married couples to analyze whether gender differences in giving or volunteering emerge among individuals at retirement. Additionally, it examines how giving changes during a range of years before and after retirement, with the understanding that preparing and undergoing such a life change is a process rather than one moment in time. Key Findings: • Both men and women maintain their charitable giving after retirement, especially compared to other types of spending. • Around retirement, single women and married couples are more likely to give and give more than single men. These gender differences are consistent before and after retirement. • Around retirement, giving by single women and married couples is more stable than giving by single men. • Around retirement, single women and married couples are more likely to volunteer, and their likelihood of volunteering is more stable, compared to single men. Researched and written by: Women’s Philanthropy Institute. The Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) is part of the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. WPI increases understanding of women’s philanthropy through rigorous research and education, interpreting and sharing these insights broadly to improve philanthropy. Learn more at https://philanthropy.iupui.edu/WPI. 
Trust Your Inner Wisdom Writer and teacher Olivia Hoblitzelle was recently featured on Dorian Mintzer's "Revolutionize Your Re-tirement" webinar addressing the wisdom that lies within us, no matter our age. In her new book, "Aging With Wisdom: Reflections, Stories & Teachings," she expands that thinking. Amazon writes: "How do we find beauty and meaning in old age? How do we overturn the paradigm of ageism? An extended meditation on how to age consciously and embrace life in all its fullness and won-der, Aging with Wisdom answers these questions." Her advice is to embrace life in all its fullness and wonder, and to cultivate an inner life resilient enough to handle the vicissitudes of aging. "Our innermost being is ageless," she said. Find out more here: https://www.oliviahoblitzelle.com/. Go4Life: Flexibility Exercises from the National Institute on Aging at NIH Change up your exercise routine by incorporating new flexibility exercises. Flexibility or stretching exercises give you more freedom of movement for your physical activities and your everyday activities. When trying a flexibility exercise, do each stretching exercise 3 to 5 times at each session. These exercises are a simple way to stay active and most of them can be done almost anywhere! Be sure to try all four types of exercise – endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility. Want to learn new flexibility exercises? Find step-by-step instructions and safety tips for each exercise from Go4Life. Population Aging Presents Great Economic Opportunity Older Americans — growing in numbers and diversity — will be key to the nation’s future economic health, but the public and private sectors must adapt to these demographic realities, according to “Longevity Economics: Leveraging the Advantages of an Aging Society,” a new report developed by The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) with support from Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
By 2035, adults age 65 and older will outnumber children under age 18 for the first time in American history. The report argues that as the longevity era develops, actions are needed now to address ageism and age discrimination, develop coherent policies and laws regarding retirement and pensions that recognize people are living far past the historical retirement age of 65, and enhance the economic impact of older workers and retirees at the local, regional, state, and national levels.
“Longevity Economics” was produced by a GSA workgroup chaired by Peter Cappelli, director of the Center for Human Resources at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. “Longer life expectancy is a tremendous boon for Americans,” Cappelli said. “In this report, we hope to stimulate a policy conversation on how society and the economy can make the best use of living longer.” Recognizing that the future of aging won’t look like the past, GSA’s new report presents: Several myths associated with older people in the workforce and facts that dispel them: - A perspective on five phases of aging and reasons why older adults are not a homogeneous group and should not be viewed as such;
- Ways that Americans are contributing to the productivity of American society far past age 65;
- Ways that the consumer habits of older Americans create ripple effects in the economy;
- Actions that have been taken by other countries that already have super-aged societies; and
- Changes that should be considered in the U.S. to eliminate ageism and foster the emergence of longevity economics.
https://www.geron.org/images/gsa/documents/gsa-longevity-economics-2018.pdf
Click to return to the Issue Highlights. | 
