ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book examines the participation of older people in place-making in six different cities in Asia. It presents the motivation for such place appropriation, the aspiration to self-assertion and community survival/continuation, as originating from the kampung spirit. The book argues that innovative design methods have emerged while seeking alternativeness to highly regulative and planned spatial management and demolition-renewal spatial development. It shows that small-scale and workable place-making might spearhead a corrective movement to transform capital-friendly and ageing-out-of-place urbanism. The book explores the autonomy of individuals, spontaneity of social activities, and solidarity among citizens to create their own life space. It also shows that one of the requisites for pursuing creative ageing in a high-density, high-rise environment should be informal space, where older people create their own life space – in other words exercise 'the right to design'.
