ABSTRACT
Climate change is now a key issue for researchers and policymakers to address in respect of building age-friendly cities. The book argues that population ageing and urbanisation are two major social forces transforming many aspects of our lives, but to these, we must add environmental issues posed by the increasingly common extreme weather events affecting all parts of the globe, along with the effects of air pollution. Both represent a major threat to the quality of urban environments and young and older people in particular. This chapter will argue that climate change and natural disasters are not equal opportunity threats but exacerbate in many cases existing inequalities related to race and ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and age. Such impacts are felt greatest by the most socially vulnerable, especially groups within the older population. The chapter explores the interaction between ageing, urbanisation, and climate change: First, by examining why cities are important in the debate about climate change; second, identifying some of the reasons why older people in cities are especially vulnerable to environmental extremes; and third, reviewing the potential of older people to play a more central role in debates on the effects of climate change.
