“…however attractive an evergreen agenda is, it requires deep-seated changes in our individual behavior, our economic institutions, and our social customs…. Convincing governments of the need to build their policymaking around an evergreen future is sure to stir suspicion, cynicism and doubt. How we overcome short-termism at both an individual and government level to seize the longevity imperative will be especially challenging. The stereotypes of aging will be hard to shift and represent a substantial barrier to change.”
Well before the above quote, in Chapter 1 of The Longevity Imperative, Scott makes the point that we are now propelled toward a “second longevity revolution” where we respond to our potential longer lives by changing how we age. Naturally I reflected – when was the first longevity revolution? In previous posts of mine I have noted the 2001 book Longevity Revolution by Theodore Roszak subtitled “As Boomers Become Elders”.
Obviously already under way, Roszak said at that time, “The Longevity Revolution could go wrong in any number of ways. It is even more likely that there will be a concerted effort to incorporate everything that is deep and wise about the experience of aging into the dynamics of the marketplace…turning the seniority of our citizens into a sales pitch…”
Was he right on? Think of some terms for that marketplace since 2001 – Longevity Economy, Silver Economy – and thank you Mr. Scott, add Evergreen Economy.
Fast forward, Scott shifts us in a new direction in thinking and with his evergreen descriptor we should see this longevity revolution 2.0 as no longer being Boomer-centric as underscored in the Roszak subtitle. More convincingly, now two decades on, Scott makes it broader with “We need instead to focus not on changes in the age mix of the population but on changes in how we age.”
Reading through Andrew J. Scott’s The Longevity Imperative in addition to names of contemporary and historical figures you will encounter countless references to notable authors other than Jonathan Swift, Oscar Wilde and J.M. Barrie, further adding to the premise that it helps in the digestion of the dialogue in this book if you are a well-read person. Right to the epilogue Scott leaves us with quotes from William Blake and Robert Frost.
It is this touch of literary references that helps shine a light on the individual Andrew J. Scott as he personalized the subject matter while laying out the facts of the matter in his evergreen agenda making the case for a longevity imperative. But if your own reading on the subject of aging and longevity up to now has been thin, you should walk away wanting to understand more, finding your own reference points to see how you relate and adapt to living a longer life.
Should you read The Longevity Imperative, pluck out any topic woven into the theme areas such as health systems, economics and the psychology of aging and enter the evergreen world of a second longevity revolution – engage in a dialogue with others. For me I’m not sure much more on this subject can be built on from this book in the near term, except for the nagging thoughts of how we might address how much the promise of longevity is out of reach for millions of people in parts of the world currently displaced by famine, climate change, disease, poverty and war.
