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Generations United’s policy work is designed to engage advocates for children, youth and older adults as joint partners in improving the lifetime well-being of all people. Generations United and our members recognize that older adults, people with disabilities and children do not live in silos. They are interdependent. They live in families, neighborhoods and communities. Policy changes that eliminate or reduce critical benefits, supports and services of family members, caregivers and neighbors negatively impact the children, youth, older adults and people with disabilities that they live with, support and care for. Likewise, smart investments in people of one generation reap benefits for those in other generations in the form of a stronger workforce and by ensuring quality of life and well-being. They will make America more competitive and help achieve fiscal sustainability. If we neglect thoughtful investments across the lifespan and abandon support for the growing interdependence of generations, we risk failure in the form of wasteful spending, increased public divisiveness and policies injurious to American families and communities.
While we continue to address immediate challenges and lay the groundwork for long-term stability we must engage in a respective and ongoing discussion about the changing demographics of our nation. As the baby boomer generation ages and as new immigrant and racial/ethnic minority populations grow, we must continue to ensure that we support our most vulnerable populations – regardless of their age or background. Programs and opportunities to foster intergenerational cross-cultural contacts will promote better understanding across the demographic spectrums, as well as provide tangible benefits for our nation’s ability to care for and protect all of its people.
Generations United uses the following principles to guide our work and assess the intergenerational impact of legislation. Although Generations United supports a wide range of policies that are consistent with the intergenerational approach, we work to carefully limit our focus to those areas that are distinctly intergenerational, timely, and/or in clear need of leadership. While this agenda was created to represent current key intergenerational issues of concern to Generations United members, we maintain the flexibility to respond to key issues as they arise over time.