Take your grandparents online!

Only 43% of Polish seniors aged 65–74 use the internet, according to Eurostat’s report for 2020. That is a much lower share than the EU average of 61%.

By contrast, the highest shares of older people active online were recorded in Denmark (94%), Luxembourg and Sweden (91% each), the Netherlands (90%) and Finland (88%).

Yet access to the internet and the ability to use it can help older people overcome loneliness by making it easier to stay in touch with other seniors and with busy or far-away family members, whom the pandemic has made even harder to meet.

The internet can make everyday tasks much easier for seniors – from grocery shopping to dealing with public offices, booking doctor’s appointments or banking (according to Statistics Poland (GUS) data from 2017, only 19.6% of people aged 55–64 and 8.6% of those aged 65–74 shopped online).

Internet access is also a gateway to a wealth of digital resources, including museum collections from all over the world made available virtually, online theatre performances and concerts, as well as podcast and video-on-demand services. The internet therefore provides worthwhile entertainment, competing effectively with television, which dominates in this age group.

That is why it is so important to take grandparents/older parents online – to help them install software, teach them how to find their way around the internet or pass on the addresses of worthwhile websites. The time you spend together will also improve your relationship, which is a benefit that cannot be overestimated It is worth it in every respect!

That is why we at Fundacja Rozwoju Przez Całe Życie (Continuum Foundation) have become involved in the international project CEDAC – Creative educators of digital arts and culture (funded by the Erasmus+ programme), which aims to develop workshops and digital tools for educators who would like to encourage older people to make use of online arts and culture resources, and to create their own works and share them online with other seniors

We will keep you posted on how work on the project is progressing!