We Need You: Takeaways from ISO Plenary Week 2024

It was a pleasure meeting with colleagues from around the world who have been working diligently and collaboratively on developing ISO 25553, Smart Multigenerational Neighbourhoods standard framework.

The aim of this project is to accelerate construction of a new breed of age-friendly housing in ‘smart’ socially supportive and inclusive, multigenerational neighbourhoods, employing innovative technologies, business and service models, to improve health and wellbeing across the life course, protect the environment, and reduce the financial burden on Citizens and State.

Setting Standards

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is commonly regarded as the 'gold' standard. An independent, non-governmental international organisation, ISO is composed of representatives from the national standards bodies of member countries. An ISO standard can transform a good idea into a scalable enterprise, improving quality, safety, and efficiency, fostering innovation, reducing costs, and promoting global trade and sustainability.

The AAA's 'Neighbourhoods of the Future' project set sail in 2015. It has been a global voyage of discovery, and as we navigate the latter stages of our journey, it's worth reflecting on 10 key principles underpinned by ISO 25553:

1. Stakeholder Collaboration: Embrace diverse perspectives, leading to more comprehensive and well-rounded solutions.
2. Social Inclusivity: Be equitable and inclusive; benefitting high, and low-income regions, countries and communities alike.
3. Innovation and Knowledge Sharing: Foster continuous improvement and the integration of cutting-edge technologies and best practices.
4. Regulatory Compliance: Align with existing international standards and local regulations, reducing risks and fostering smoother project approvals.
5. Economic Viability: Promote cost savings through economies of scale; efficient resource use and maintenance, enhance market competitiveness.
6. Future-Proofing: Incorporate, adaptable and resilient design principles and infrastructure to accommodate future tech and environmental changes.
7. Sustainability: Reduce environmental impact through energy-efficient, resource-conserving, and climate-resilient practices.
8. Continuous Review: Build in an iterative design process with regular reviews and feedback loops to provide evidence, refine and improve the project plan.
9. Pilot Projects: Implement pilot projects and/or prototypes to test and validate design concepts and technologies before full-scale implementation.
10. Benchmarking: Benchmark against best practices in the industry, learning from, and sharing data with, successful projects worldwide.

Collaboration and Knowledge Exchange

Shared knowledge and open innovation support the development of potentially game-changing new products and services, along with sustainable practices that benefit both society and the environment.

Informed by ongoing work, our Plenary Week discussions covered a wide and diverse spectrum of topics related to the drafting of ISO 25553. Here are some key observations and unresolved questions:

Design

Moving from Downsizing to ‘Rightsizing’: How do we make Later Living in our smart multigenerational neighbourhoods more aspirational, and what are the design implications? (Matt Richardson, Design and Development Director, McCarthy Stone)

Universal Design: How do we ensure a fine balance is struck between people of all ages and abilities? (Led by Tom Grey, ISO 25553 Assistant Convenor, Research Fellow, Trinity College Dublin)

Holistic Planning: How do we better align individual building and neighbourhood design planning regulations? (Led by Rae Dulmage, Standards, Codes, Regulations and Government Affairs Expert)

Community-building and Social Transformation: How do we ensure that the standard maintains a more global perspective? (Arletty Pinel, representing the Caribbean and Latin American countries (LAC))

Green Space, Third Places, and Mixed-use Walkable Neighbourhoods: How can our standard foster life-affirming, sustainable, and accessible environments at scale? (Led by Joy Melnikow, Professor Emeritus, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of California, Davis)

Health + Care

From the Hospital to the Home: It’s time to rethink our approach to managing health and social care within our Neighbourhoods of the Future. (Dr. Evangelia Chrysikou, Programme Director, MSc Healthcare Facilities, UCL Bartlett School of Architecture)

Healthy Communities: We see design as a third pillar of community care. Operating both as a community in itself and as a vital part of the community surrounding it, the health centre of the future will be defined by the needs of the people it serves. (Ernesto Bartolini, Director, Ab Rogers Design)

A Whole-of-Society Health Management System: We must leverage ‘smart’ digital technologies to enable reactive, proactive, and predictive medical and/or physical interventions for all generations. (Professor Washington Yotto Ochieng, Head of Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Imperial University)

Lack of Interoperability: How can the ISO standard facilitate change to improve patient safety, reduce costs for health systems, and enhance digital health? (Dipak Kalra, President, European Institute for Innovation through Health Data)

Have Your Say

These interventions reflect the comprehensive and inclusive approach needed to develop effective and sustainable smart multigenerational neighbourhoods. With support from the world's fifth largest law firm, led by CMS Law partner Thomas Jameson, we are currently in the process of reviewing and consolidating 34 individual draft contributions to the standard, written by leading practitioners and domain experts worldwide.

If you are passionate about shaping the future of our communities and have the expertise to contribute, we need your voice. Complete this form to join us in this transformative initiative. We are particularly seeking stakeholders from low-income countries to ensure global applicability and inclusivity. Help us make ISO 25553 a robust and relevant standard for all multigenerational neighbourhoods, no matter where they are located. Your input can drive change and create a lasting impact—be a part of this groundbreaking journey.

Tom Grey Britta Berge Ab Rogers Ernesto Bartolini Matthew Richardson Evangelia Chrysikou PhD Amanda Greenaway Paul Smith Jon Payne Redmond O'Leary Washington Yotto Ochieng, EBS, FREng Mark Vignesha Roberts Prof Richard Harding Daniel Cartter Martin Dean ???? Antoinette Smedley-Walsh Samantha Mauger Paul Quinn Anne-Marie CARTON Andrew Ward Vimal Rafi Rich Mohanan Jayne Evans Nick H ??Lucie Wellington BSI ISO - International Organization for Standardization Agile Ageing Alliance Masi Mohammadi Prof. Dr. Nico L.U. Van Meeteren Paul Teverson Dipak Kalra Nicola Packer David Wortley Clare Cassidy Alexander Berler Neil Bellamy Quazi M Mahtab uz Zaman Arletty Pinel Calvin W Luk Sari Sarlio-Siintola Evert-Jan Hoogerwerf monique epstein Anthony Ciccarello Stephanie K. Firestone Helen Crampin ?? Nicola Palmarini Hua Zhong Sonja Grigoleit Hajime Yamada Matt McCann Julia Glenn Anne Livingstone Rae Dulmage Christina Choong Camilla Evensson Ramanath Bhat ( ???? ???? ???? ) Rama Gheerawo Klaus Kummermehr Phill Kay Tim Murdoch Steve Gates Anthony Howarth Linda Chandler Ed Steidl, MBA Jürgen Brandst?tter Mark Venning Lloyd Crawford Dr Pamela Topping Judy Blakey MNZM PhD Philip Franke Halbyn Rich Claus Dr. Eppe Rebecca Jarvis Sam Shah Pascal Beauchesne Todd Brickhouse Jeremy Brassington Andrew Coutts James Dickson Peter Wintlev-Jensen Monja Korter