Elders: A Cultural Resource for Promoting Sustainable Development

"In Africa when an elder person dies it is as though a whole library had burned down." - Malian philosopher Amadou Hampate Ba

In non-Western cultures, elders play a central role in socialising younger generations, in passing on indigenous knowledge and cultural values, and in ensuring the stability and survival of their societies. However, development programmes often narrowly focus on youth and exclude elders, thereby failing to account for - and even offending - local cultures where elders' role is still very much valued. In that context, this paper: calls attention to the incongruity between policies and programmes that aim to promote the development of non-western societies, on the one hand, and the socio-cultural infrastructure and values of such communities, on the other; discusses the neglected role of elders and of intergenerational learning as cultural resources for mobilising change and preserving social cohesion; and presents examples of programmes that foster inclusion of elders and intergenerational learning in efforts to bring about positive and sustainable change at the community level.

The paper begins by outlining the core cultural values, roles, and attitudes in non-western societies in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific that author Judi Aubel argues should be taken into account if development programmes are to be truly "culturally-adapted". Table 1 in the paper depicts a framework for understanding the socio-culture dynamics of western and of non-western societies that has been developed by anthropologists and cross-cultural psychologists. It distinguishes between collectivist and individualist value systems associated with non-western and western cultures. A few of the salient differences are that:

• Western, youth-focused cultures reflect ageist attitudes toward elders, whereas, in non-western cultures, especially in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific, elders are to be respected for their age and experience.
• Younger members of society embrace more global values, whereas older community members hold on to more traditional ones. Globalisation involves a virtually one-way dissemination of western cultural images and values toward non-western societies. Western, individualist values are communicated to society at large and specifically to young people in developing countries through three major institutions: the mass media and advertising; formal schools; and development organisations and programmes. For example, "HELPAGE International reports on ageist biases experienced by elders in Africa who resent not being included in HIV/AIDS prevention programs given their role in educating youth on reproductive health issues."

A social work professor based in Senegal quoted here explains one of the reasons why youth-focused development programmes based on western values can have unintended negative consequences, writing that these programmes have "contributed to the ever widening gap between the generations that we observe today in our society". Such a gap is manifest in decreased communication and learning between youth and elders, as several examples in the paper illustrate. Overall, westernisation can entail the loss of cultural traditions, weakened bonds, and reduced cooperation between family and community members - all signs of diminished social cohesion.

That said, there are examples of programmes that prioritise involvement of elders and promote intergenerational learning. Among other organisations whose work is referenced here, The Grandmother Project (GMP) has created grandmother-inclusive and intergenerational approaches for implementation in various countries, such as Laos, Uzbekistan, Djibouti, Senegal, Mali, and Mauritania. GMP has developed an approach in which multigenerational groups analyse community problems and identify collective actions that can lead to positive and sustainable changes within their own cultural systems.

For example, in a Senegalese project to discourage female genital mutilation (FGM), participatory educational activities with grandmothers and intergenerational dialogue are key elements of an approach to promote holistic development of young girls (see Related Summaries, below). A grandmother leader who participated in the intergenerational workshops said, "We never practiced cutting maliciously but rather to educate the girls. Now we understand that as grandmothers we have a responsibility to put an end to this practice."

In conclusion: "The available evidence shows that programs that have built on these cultural resources [elders and intergenerational learning] have contributed to positive and sustainable changes in nutrition, health and education practices while at the same time they have strengthened cultural identify and social cohesion within families and communities."

Click here for the document in French in PDF format (8 pages).