One of the highlights of the 15th International GU Conference was a keynote address by Marc Freedman, founder of Civic Ventures www.civicventures.org, a leading expert in how our nation’s 78-million boomers are positioned to positively impact their communities, the business/employment sector, and philanthropic initiatives.
Marc’s research has revealed Americans of varying backgrounds are intensely interested “encore careers” which combine social impact, income and personal meaning in the second half of life.
Robert Chambers, a social innovator in his encore career and one of the winners of the Civic Ventures-created Purpose Prize www.purposeprize.org, was recently quoted sating “I was old enough to understand the injustice I saw and experienced enough to do something about it. Given the size of our baby boomer population, it’s high time to figure out how to recycle all that experience, to use it to solve our nation’s most pressing social problems.”
A recent survey of 3,500 people between the ages of 44 and 70 found that 5-8 million Americans are already in encore careers – and of those workers who have not yet launched an encore career, fully half are interested in doing so. Among those currently in encore careers are Americans creating their own new social ventures to address pressing problems.
Mark Freedman, Founder of Civic Ventures, with GRAND’s Christine and Jonathan at this Summer’s Generations United Conference in Washington D.C.
According to Marc Freeman, every dimension of our family and community lives, as well as the direction we can turn to address our national and international problems, relies on the best use of the experience accrued by our generations of social innovators, teachers, health professionals and business entrepreneurs. “There are some things that only humans can do,” asserts Marc. He sincerely believes that there is both an economic and emotional imperative in play, motivating vast numbers of Boomers to re-engage and re-energize our systems education, health care, and a wide range of social needs.
GRAND Media is on the front lines of this cutting edge social movement and conversation. Through features highlighting the contributions today’s GRANDS are making to their families and community, GRAND is building a powerful network of concerned and involved experienced citizens. This “Generational Force for Good” is moving forward for all the right reasons. This “Gen-Force” can enhance the work of allied advocacy and service organizations who are building legacy for our grandchildren to inherit.
Jack Levine
4Generations Institute
Partnership Director, GRAND Media
jack@4Gen.org