Celebrate Ageing

I believe that older people are one of the most wonderful cohorts of people on the planet - but somewhere along the way we’ve lost sight of this. We need to turn this around, not just because older people deserve better, but also because doing so would make the world a better place for all of us. I believe such a significant cultural shift requires a broad range of strategies. Strategies are needed to encourage every Australian to roll up their sleeves, embrace their own ageing and rethink their interactions with older people. This is work Celebrate Ageing is focused on.

– Dr Catherine Barrett, Director and Founder of Celebrate Ageing.

Celebrate Ageing is a Not for Profit organisation challenging ageism and building respect for older people. Founded in 2013 by Dr Catherine Barrett, Celebrate Ageing utilises art and narrative based approaches to create cultural change. Our work is co-led by older people and we offer Fellowships for older people, as part of our Leadership Academy. In 2020 we launched Celebrate Ageing School (see our education page here), a series of innovative online educational resources, to accelerate the pace of change.

Our programs:

1. Tea Cosy Project: art to challenge ageism

2. Embolden: an annual Festival challenging ageism and building respect

3. The Museum of Love: art exploring the importance of love in the lives of people with dementia

4. The OPAL Institute: addressing the sexual rights of older people

5. Alice's Garage: empowering older LGBTI people & promoting healthy LGBTI ageing

6. Projecting Beauty: catwalks against ageism - making beautiful an attitude

7. The Kindness Pandemic: intersectional