Note to Correspondents

CONFERENCE ON ‘CARING COMMUNITIES –- IMAGINING THE AGE OF CONNECTIVITY’

TO BE HELD AT UN HEADQUARTERS ON 12 FEBRUARY

A conference on “Caring Communities for the 21st Century:  Imagining the Possible ‘Age of Connectivity’” will take place on Wednesday, 12 February, in Conference Room 4, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The event is organized by the International Council for Caring Communities, along with the United Nations Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) Task Force, the United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat), the Programme on Ageing of the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs, and the United Nations Department of Public Information.

The forum, to be attended by a select group of professional and business leaders, permanent representatives to the United Nations, and officials of United Nations specialized agencies and other relevant agencies, will address the issue of the "Age of Connectivity" and its impact on community development, finance, tourism, communication technology, and health and information.

Remarkable changes in age structure, and in economic, social and cultural life, have presented new challenges that require continuous follow-up.  Given these demographic and societal changes, the adjustment for policies and courses of action in today's society needs to be conducted in order to ensure sustainable growth, as well as promote inclusion and equal opportunities for all.

Information and communication technology (ICT) can be effectively used to improve the quality of life for senior citizens, both by enhancing individual employability of knowledge, which can lead to an increasingly active involvement of the senior generation, and by creating networks of Internet-based information, training and support, as well as systems for social and health services.

This event presents an opportunity to discover information and ideas by building links between the public and private sectors in order to learn about effective ICT programmes that can enhance a society for all ages and apply such efforts in diverse development communities.

For further information, please contact Enrica Murmura of the ICT Task Force Secretariat at (212) 963-5913, e-mail:  murmura@un.org.

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