European Seniors' Union - ESU

18/10/2026

A European Agenda for Senior Housing
Housing remains primarily a responsibility of Member States, regions and municipalities, but the European Union can play an important role through its policies on affordable housing, energy efficiency, social inclusion, cohesion and investment. The Bergen conference will explore where Europe should act and where national, regional and local authorities must take the lead, with a view to making senior housing a more visible part of the European agenda.

Good Practice and European Dialogue
The conference will welcome speakers from Norway and across Europe, including political leaders, academics, housing professionals and civil society representatives. Participants will take part in keynote addresses, panel discussions and structured exchanges of good practice.

A highlight of the programme will be the study visit to Helgetun, a community for senior living in Bergen, which shows how accessible, community-oriented and integrated housing can work in practice.

See the full programme on our European Seniors' Union - ESU website.

13/10/2026

Policies on Ageing and Older Persons in Ireland – Exchange with Irish Stakeholders 🇮🇪

Following the meeting of the Administrative Council of AGE Platform Europe, an important exchange with Irish stakeholders took place at the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, in collaboration with Age & Opportunity and Active Retirement Ireland.

The discussions highlighted some of the key challenges facing older people in Ireland, including loneliness, social isolation, and the need for greater recognition of older persons’ rights, participation and contribution to society.

A key focus was the importance of ensuring that older people can live with dignity, remain connected to their communities, and actively participate in all aspects of society.

The exchange also provided an opportunity to discuss the importance of a United Nations Convention on the Rights of Older Persons — an international framework that could strengthen the protection of older people’s human rights, combat ageism and help ensure that no one is left behind as they age.

Mai Quaid, President of Active Retirement Ireland, highlighted the importance of autonomy, independence and the right of older people to make decisions about their own lives. As she emphasises, older people must be involved in decisions that affect them, with their voices and lived experiences at the heart of policymaking. Nothing about us without us.

Orla Byrne of Age & Opportunity also contributed to the discussion on the need to strengthen the rights of older people and support progress towards a UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.

🤝 A society for all ages requires action, not just words. Tackling loneliness and social isolation, promoting meaningful participation, and ensuring that older people’s human rights are fully recognised and protected must remain key priorities.

Thank you to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, Age & Opportunity and Active Retirement Ireland for facilitating this important exchange and for their continued commitment to improving the lives of older people in Ireland.

12/10/2026

Happy birthday to you, dear Maria !

12/10/2026

Administrative Council meeting of AGE Platform Europe in Dublin, under the Irish Presidency of the European Union. The European Seniors' Union - ESU is a permanent member of the Administrative Council. The meeting will be connected to a policy event at the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission.

10/10/2026

10/10/2026

Alone Together? Have Our Phones and Computers Replaced Our Human Companions?

At the Summer Academy of the European Seniors' Union - ESU, in Nicosia, Cyprus, one of the most thought-provoking contributions came from Geertrui Mieke De Ketelaere, whose keynote, “Alone Together? Seniors, Loneliness and the Rise of AI Companions,” challenged us to look beyond the technology and who we are as humans.

Mieke already atrended a ESU Summer Academy in Vienna in 2021, where she was presenting her book about Artificial Intelligence. Since then, AI has evolved at extraordinary speed. But some of the fundamental questions she raised then have become even more urgent today.

Her recent book, The Chatbot Trap (2026), explores the risks behind the growing popularity of companion chatbots. These systems can offer conversation, reassurance and a sense of connection. For someone experiencing loneliness, having a seemingly attentive conversation partner available 24/7 may feel like a genuine comfort.

But at what cost?

What happens when a machine becomes the person—or presence—we turn to first? When algorithms designed to keep us engaged begin to influence our emotions, our relationships and even our understanding of intimacy?

Can artificial companionship ease loneliness while simultaneously deepening our isolation?

This is not simply a question about older people. Loneliness does not respect age. Research and our discussions in Nicosia reminded us that younger generations can experience it just as acutely.

Perhaps we should therefore ask ourselves a more uncomfortable question: Have our phones and computers gradually replaced some of our everyday human companions?

We can spend hours connected digitally while remaining disconnected socially. We can exchange hundreds of messages without having a meaningful conversation. And now, we can turn to artificial intelligence for understanding, sympathy and companionship.

The opportunities are real. Technology can support people, facilitate communication and offer moments of comfort. But it must complement human relationships, not become an excuse to neglect them.

Mieke's contribution was important precisely because it raised awareness without reducing the debate to a simple choice between embracing AI and rejecting it. We need to understand both its potential and its dangers, particularly when emotional vulnerability becomes part of a commercial business model.

For ESU, the central lesson from Nicosia is clear: fighting loneliness requires more than technological innovation. It requires human presence, intergenerational solidarity and communities that make everyone feel valued.

We are grateful to Mieke for continuing to challenge our thinking, as she did when we first met years ago.

The ultimate question is not whether AI can keep us company. It is whether, in a world full of artificial companions, we will still make time to be companions to one another.

09/10/2026

The Sound of Cyprus Music.

07/10/2026

Already preparing for our Spring Conference in Cluj-Napoca, Romania from 17 - 19 March 2027 on "Challenges to Democracy and Democratic Backsliding in a multicultural society: the role of inter-generational dialogue". The presence of many local, regional and European political leaders is already assured. Prepared under the guidance of our national member and its President Victor Dobre and Secretary General Marinel Florescu. With a warm welcome to the beautiful city of Cluj-Napoca, capital of Transilvania.

05/10/2026

Digitalisation must not become a new form of exclusion.

When essential services move online, we must ask a fundamental political question:

Who is being left behind?

On 28 September, AGE Platform Europe, the European Disability Forum and the International Federation for Human Rights submitted a collective complaint against to the European Committee of Social Rights, with the support of Unia and the Service for Combating Poverty, Precarity and Social Exclusion.

This is about much more than websites, apps or digital skills.

It is about equality, dignity and fundamental social rights.
Today, buying a train ticket, contacting your municipality, dealing with your bank or booking a medical appointment may seem like simple tasks. But when these services become exclusively digital, they can become inaccessible to older people, persons with disabilities and many others who face digital barriers.

A society cannot call itself inclusive if people are effectively excluded from essential services simply because they cannot, or do not wish to, navigate a digital system.

We strongly support digital progress. But digitalisation must serve people — people must not be forced to serve digitalisation.

The European Social Charter provides an important framework for ensuring that public services, essential private services and social services remain genuinely accessible. This means that alternatives such as physical service counters, telephone assistance and postal communication must remain available where necessary.

This is a political choice.

We must decide what kind of Europe we want to build:

➡️ A Europe where digital transformation creates greater access and empowerment?

Or a Europe where those who cannot keep up are simply told to adapt — and are left behind?

Our answer must be clear: digital transformation must be inclusive by design.

The European Committee of Social Rights will now examine the admissibility of the complaint, with a decision expected by early 2027. We will follow this process closely and share the lessons it offers for our advocacy across Europe.

This case should also be a wake-up call to governments, public authorities and service providers:

No essential service should become inaccessible because it has become digital.

Europe must ensure that technological progress strengthens participation in society — for everyone, at every age and in every circumstance.

🔗 Read more:

AGE Platform Europe – Taking action to improve digital equality

We strongly encourage colleagues, policymakers and civil society organisations across Europe to follow this case — and to ask the same question in their own countries: are we building a digital Europe that includes everyone, or one that leaves some people behind? This will also be a question for our next Seniors' Academy in Salzburg.

04/10/2026

From Nicosia to Our Communities: New Ideas for Tackling Loneliness in Later Life
An interview with Dr. Edeltraud Paul, Member of the ESU Executive Committee
The ESU Summer Academy 2026 in Nicosia brought together participants from across Europe to discuss some of the challenges facing older people today. One of the central themes was loneliness — a complex issue examined from different perspectives and supported by research presented by universities and experts.

For Dr. Edeltraud Paul, Member of the ESU Executive Committee from Austria, the discussions in Nicosia were not only intellectually stimulating. They also raised an important question: How can we bring ideas from a European conference back into our towns and communities and turn them into practical action?

We spoke with her about her impressions of the Summer Academy and the ideas she would like to see developed further.

Read the full article and Gordana Matolek's tips on The European Seniors' Union - ESU webpage.