The Drivers of Ageism

As Australia’s first charity, The Benevolent Society has been working for over 200 years to provide important services to the community, and also as an active catalyst for social change.

It is with pride that I can say The Benevolent Society has fought for many things we take for granted in Australia today – free legal aid, the elimination of child labour, the establishment of the first ‘old age pension’ and the first dedicated maternity hospital are just a few examples. Importantly, our campaigning efforts for a just society where all Australians can live their best life continue today as a core element of the work we do.

We are committed to campaigning for the essential conditions for Australians to age well. As part of that commitment, we are building a coalition to support a sustained, multi-platform, evidence-based advocacy campaign to tackle the issue of ageism toward older people

As campaigners for older Australians, we believe we must positively change thinking about ageing and what it means to be an older version of ourselves. If we can do that, we believe we can begin to shift norms, expectations, policies and outcomes for all older people; and mobilise a holistic political response to the ‘opportunities’ - rather than the ‘threats’ - presented by our ageing population.