(1) Global Action on Aging produces a weekly email newsletter that contains 50-60 articles covering income support, health access and human rights of older persons in the United States as well as around the world. Special sections contain news stories and research on rural aging, older persons in emergencies and Ageing Watch at the United Nations. For a free subscription, visit www.globalaging.org and hit the "subscribe" button. Visitors find the newsletter easy to navigate and attractively presented.

(2) The International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (INPEA) announces the 1st Annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) on June 15, 2006.
Communities and municipalities will make proclamations declaring June 15, 2006 as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) and hold events designed to raise their communities’ awareness of elder abuse. The day is in support of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing which recognizes the significance of elder abuse as a public health and human rights issue. Governments, non-governmental organizations, educational institutions, religious groups, professionals in the field of aging, interested individuals as well as older persons themselves will promote a better understanding of abuse and neglect of older persons by organizing activities around the world to raise awareness of the cultural, social, economic and demographic processes affecting elder abuse and neglect.
Throughout the world, abuse and neglect of older persons is largely under-recognized or treated as an unspoken problem. Unfortunately, no community or country in the world is immune from this costly, public health and human rights crisis. Research indicates that public education campaigns like World Elder Abuse Awareness Day are vital for informing people in a growing number of countries about elder abuse and active involvement of the media is central to its success.
All countries, communities, neighborhoods and organizations interested in working to help bring recognition and ultimately an end to elder abuse and neglect are urged to take part in the 1st Annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on June 15, 2006. Awareness activities may encompass volunteer or educational programs, cultural and art events, use of information technology, or any activity that aims to create awareness of elder abuse and neglect. Raising awareness of elder abuse and neglect is a challenge and no effort is too small. To learn more, and to download a free copy of the Community Guide World Day Tool Kit, please visit www.inpea.net.

(3) The International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (INPEA) has launched its research agenda in accordance with recommendations from the Second World Assembly on Ageing. The first phase involves a World-wide Environmental Scan of Elder Abuse, conducted in partnership with Ryerson University, the University of Kentucky and Cleveland State University.
The INPEA requests that all organizations and individuals who work with older adults complete the survey so that information on public policy, services, educational resources, and training available on elder abuse may be gathered. INPEA’s ultimate goal is to identify gaps in the above-mentioned areas and to develop interventions and strategies to fill them. This survey is the first of its kind and persons or organizations completing the survey should do so specifically about elder abuse in their country. The survey will be translated in French, Japanese, and Spanish. Feedback on survey results will be available by summer 2006, and will be posted on the INPEA website.
To participate in the world-wide study, please complete the World Environmental Scan of Elder Abuse located on the INPEA website at: www.inpea.net by April 24th, 2006.

(4) African Governments take action on social protection
13 African governments agreed last week to put together national social protection plans to support older people and other vulnerable groups. Delegates at a meeting in Zambia signed up to the Livingstone call for action – an historic agreement that recognizes social pensions and cash transfers as an effective means of tackling poverty in Africa. Read more and download the call for action, opening speech and keynote address from HelpAge International's website: http://www.helpage.org/News/Latestnews/@27954

(5) Introducing IRCHAL
Established in 2004, the International Research Centre for Healthy Ageing and Longevity (IRCHAL) is a non-profit charitable corporate entity subject to Australian Government audit, and is endorsed as a deductible gift recipient. IRCHAL’s mission is to promote healthy ageing & longevity through interdisciplinary collaboration amongst the world’s leading experts on the science of health, ageing and longevity, and to disseminate evidence-based knowledge throughout the nations of the developed and developing world for the betterment of humankind.
IRCHAL collaborates with “the who’s who” of leading global experts from a broad array of disciplines relating to health, ageing and longevity in order to address the challenges and opportunities of an ageing society. With its International Advisory Council and international network of Expert Consultants, IRCHAL occupies a unique niche in the world of biogerontology, clinical and social gerontology.
IRCHAL’s research and collaboration forms the basis of the Annual Conference Programmes for the International Conferences on Healthy Ageing and Longevity, and the dissemination of the information internationally. The annual International Conferences on Healthy Ageing and Longevity were created to bring the best the world has to offer on healthy ageing research, policy and clinical practice, for the benefit of the international community, including both developing and developed countries. The Annual Conference Programmes are designed to stimulate discussion, debate, collaboration and the exchange of ideas thus creating fertile ground for forward thinking and decision making as the baby-boom generation inevitably progresses through the age structure. Through the annual International Conferences on Healthy Ageing & Longevity, IRCHAL provides an annual world forum for leading academic research on health, ageing and longevity; best clinical practice; and strategies for improving public health, and to disseminate the findings of each Annual Conference to the public consumer.
The 3rd International Conference on Healthy Ageing and Longevity will be held at the Melbourne Convention Centre, Australia, October 13-15, 2006. The annual conferences are co-sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Programme on Ageing and endorsed by and the Australian Government. For further information, please visit www.longevity-international.com or email Noah.Weller@longevity-international.com