Country: Spain

Idea: In Spain there are thousands of perfectly healthy and able elders who once retired find it hard to channel their creative energy in a useful and productive manner.For many pensioners suddenly having so much time to spare is a problem in itsself, particularly as they need to feel as highly valued citizens, not the discharge of our voracious consumer society. This initiative aims therefore to serve a dual purpose:Firstly, To help old people feel better with themselves and secondly to provide them with the adequate framework to help society in different ways.

How do you do it: We would form a group of fifteen elders whoýd be willing to form a self growth support group, with the idea of being able to share their skills with other people. At this initial stage we should focus on creating strong affectionate bonds and healing the emotional pain that so often makes us feel alienated with ourselves. When the group were mixing together well, we would as moderators help think of what habilities they were prepared to offer.Our own choices would be to help preserve the local environment,to make the steady influx of inmigrants more at home with the Spanish culture (Spanish recipes, language teching...) and to go to schools and teach the kids their own childhood games, songs, stories,handcrafts or the basic chotis steps!

Innovation: As far as we know nothing like this has ever been done in Spain before.Social services do help old people and organize trips and activities, but the general feeling of emptiness prevails as they feel they are being entertained and not given the opportunity to entertain themselves and to be able to share with other generations their skills and life long wisdom. It would be innovative because it would help bridge the present day huge generational gap and it would allow young people to see their grandparents in another, prouder light. The initiative of forming a self healing group of elders is also new as is the idea of allowing them to decide in which ways they are prepared to help society.

Impact: when both these ideas are put into practice and many groups of healthy elders are actively helping out in different ways the impact this creative force will have locally will be huge:On the one hand retired people will suddenly find themselves useful again and they will feel happier and healthier than they have done for a long time.As this project spreads out regionally or natioanlly the NHS cost will drop dramatically from less pensioners visits. On the other hand,the towns and cities will benefit enormously as the parks and streets will be tidier,inmigrants will be better catered for,school children will have learnt many new games and songs and it will hopefully see the revival of many beautiful dying off traditions and handcrafts.

Ethical Action: Old people in our towns will genuinely feel that they have so much to offer other, younger generations and it would challenge the whole structure os society in the way we see old people are treated nowadays. Thje whole initiative is based on strong ethical values such as compassion, empathy, altruism, courage,recovering self esteem, creativity,love and harmony.

Replication: This entrprise will begin with a group of about fifteen able elders of both genders and two or three moderators whoýd be willing to form the initial self support/working group.After no more than six months, the various skills would start being implemented in a practical and productive manner.Every fortnight weýd have an evaluation sessiion with the group to assess progress and help solve difficulties. Our aim is that after a yearýs work, weýd be able to ask members of this pioneering group to help us form another group in the northwest of Madrid where we live. After ten years, we hope this initiative would have spread nation wide and we would be delighted to be able to show our progress on the web or the local press.The idea is there now!

Sustainability: A legal association would be formed and very few funds needed, maybe only to get funds from the town hall to help cover transport expenses and buying cooking ingredients, and handcraft material. We might also need The local social services helping us to use a hall for our regular meetings. When we have proved this initial model does work we feel it would grow naturally from within like the sap of a strong tree that continually needs to have new branches grow in search of life and light and put our elders back where they belong:At the top of our society.

Position in the Ethics Mosaic of Solutions:

Factor: Otherness

Principle: Enabling self-permission to change oneself or one'