For 75 years, the National Council on Aging (NCOA) has built bridges for change alongside generations of families, ensuring their economic, health, and social well-being.

Each stride forward brought progress, improving the lives of older adults—individual by individual. But demographic trends demand more to transcend the tides of ageism and ensure that every person has the opportunity to age with security, dignity, and purpose.

The one thing that will happen to every person born in this world is that they will age. By 2030, those of us aged 65+ will increase from 49 million to 71 million. 

The road older adults travel cannot be wrought with bias, stigma, and seeing us as “less than” once we reach a certain age. After a lifetime of working hard, playing by the rules, raising the next generation, and contributing to our economy and community, we owe it to ourselves to ensure that every older adult has the opportunity to age well regardless of gender, color, sexuality, income, or zip code. 

Guided by our goal to improve 40 million lives by 2030, we will focus on the diverse older adult populations that have experienced the most disadvantages.

Read more about what we know, what we value, and what we will do to effect change.