Jordan Bowman

Is modern American society youth-led or elder-led? If you could, would you change it? We currently live in one of the most age-diverse societies in history…? I’d argue that what we need is not a black & white answer - not a more youth-led or more elder-led society. What we need right now is cogeneration. A few months ago, I gathered with some amazing leaders at AARP national headquarters in DC. CoGenerate (Formerly Encore.org) brought together 31 young leaders who are designing and implementing intergenerational programs and projects across the country. The goal of our gathering was to uncover what’s getting in the way of more successful intergenerational collaboration and to identify actionable ways it can be improved. I was delighted to serve as a facilitator to help set the tone for the day with ice-breakers and connection activities for the group. Our conversations were honest, unfiltered, fun, and insightful. The final report will be released in the coming months and I can’t wait to share it with you all! I have a lot of thoughts on this topic but, for now, I’d love to hear from my community. ? In your work or life, do you have connections across different generations? Why or why not? ? Where do you see the most age segregation? ? What do you think are some of the benefits of having connections across generations? I look forward to collaborating with this awesome group again soon! Epic group photos with: Allison Begalman (she/her/hers), Loren Waters, Nonya Khedr, Cole Stevens, Ariana Jasmine Afshar, Zhalion Levingston (In[HEIR]tance project), Zev Shapiro, Sophie Beren, Dillon St. Bernard Not pictured but just as awesome: Serena Bian, Carly Roman, Apoorva Rangan, Hulissa Aguilar, Ashwath N., Natalie Green, Thanasi D., Emily Garcia-Green It was a joy meeting with so many talented folks from so many different sectors. From Broadway directors & filmmakers to organizations getting young people engaged in politics (TurnUp Activism, Civics Unplugged). From those creating conversations across differences (BridgeUSA, The Conversationalist) to advocacy & marketing orgs like YEA! Impact, Amnesty International, and grassroots inter-faith efforts helping the incarcerated. We had non-profits, foundations (Archstone Foundation), and start-ups (Social Currant) represented as well as solopreneurs, and creatives. * Photo(s) by AARP's Stephen Voss, courtesy of CoGenerate, a national nonprofit that included me in an exciting research study of young leaders — asking us how intergenerational collaboration can be improved. Follow CoGenerate (Formerly Encore.org) to make sure you see the findings (in early 2024)! * - Jordan Bowman