Transforming Ageing in Community: addressing global ageing vulnerabilities through smart communities

In the global context of an ageing population, community dynamics are shifting requiring sustainable options for positive ageing. Many older people currently experience a range of vulnerabilities which are barriers to positive ageing. Solutions such as 'Linkers' have proven successful, but may not be possible in some contexts, because they are resource intensive. Communities have a responsibility to meet the needs of their members as they age, and to do so in a sustainable way -- socially (reducing burn-out of care-givers), economically (so that provision of care is equitable) and environmentally (so that care can be maintained by future generations). It is also in the best interests of communities in the long term to develop approaches to mitigating vulnerabilities by fostering the agency of the older people. One way to achieve this is through smart architectures which augment human care.