WalkMassachusetts has compiled a list of funding strategies and opportunities into a resource to help organizations and municipalities improve walking infrastructure. This is a valuable guide for partners working to advance age- and dementia friendly communities.
The resource underlines the value of having partnerships between local and regional planners and age- and dementia friendly community leaders. Aging services and older adults can offer important insight into proposed projects and grant applications. WalkMassachusetts worked with MHAC to develop an age-friendly walking resource guide that includes the following:
- 8 Age-Friendly Policy Actions
- 8 Age-Friendly Infrastructure Improvements
- For a 1-page, simplified handout: “Greatest Hits for Age-Friendly Walking”
- How to report a problem? Improving walking conditions in your community is much easier when you know who to talk to about solving problems. In an effort to make this process easier, WalkMassachusetts has developed an interactive map of Massachusetts with guidance about finding the right person to talk to for all of the state’s 351 municipalities.
- Family Caregiver Walkability Comment Form: The Family Caregiver Walkability Comment Form is a tool to help caregivers let local businesses and public buildings know that there are barriers in outdoor accessibility for their loved ones. We hope that you will use the Family Caregiver Walkability Comment Form to inform business managers and municipal staff about these access challenges. Our hope is that after receiving feedback about these issues, the owners and managers of these facilities will address the problems.
MHAC also contributed to a resource that encourages dementia friendly design considerations for physical infrastructure, which is available here.