International Longevity Centre Global Alliance - Designing the Future of Ageing

15th August 2025

Ageing is a global epidemic and one that we all (organisations, governments and individuals) need to better prepare for.

Whilst we know we are living longer, we now need to shift the focus to how we live happier, healthier and more fulfilling longer lives.

We have included below two books which may be of interest to colleagues across the world.

What Matters for Healthy Ageing

Edited by ILC Australia’s Professor Julie Byles, ‘What Matters for Healthy Ageing’ explores what truly matters for healthy ageing from an individual’s perspective, looking beyond life expectancy to consider quality of life, sense of identity, meaningful roles, and the elements that give life purpose.

It draws on the World Health Organisation’s framework for healthy ageing, which centres on the ability to continue doing the things that matter most to each person. These abilities are shaped by a range of influences, including social determinants of health, intrinsic capacities, personal identity, and roles such as employment and caregiving. By focusing on what is most important to the older person, this book offers Geriatricians practical models for delivering care that supports and enhances the lives of older adults.

This book is available to purchase here.

The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Ageing Issues: Global and Country Narratives

Edited by Mala Kapur Shankardass, and featuring a chapter written by ILC-Australia’s Professor Julie Byles, Meredith Taverner and Emily Princehorn titled ‘Healthy Ageing at very old ages – perspectives from women in the oldest cohort of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health’, this handbook offers an in-depth examination of the key challenges facing ageing societies worldwide.

It brings together research and insights from Africa, the Americas, the Asia-Pacific region, and Europe, addressing a wide range of topics, including ageing and gender, health and wellbeing, environmental impacts, care systems, elder abuse, intergenerational relationships, and experiences of grief.

‘The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Ageing Issues: Global and Country Narratives’ can be pre-order here, with shipping after 29 August 2025