Troubadour president to speak at regional seminar

Troubadour Folk Club president Mr Michael Fine will be keynote speaker at the Central Coast Regional Creativity and Wellbeing Seminar being held in Erina on March 27.

Mr Fine of Woy Woy is a sociology professor at Macquarie University and a published author and researcher.

Mr Fine will give a talk entitled Liberating Creative Ageing - breaking through the barriers of old age and artistic creation.

"According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 21 per cent, or more than one in five of the 327,723 people who live on the Central Coast, was aged 65 and over in 2016," Mr Fine said.

"This demographic profile is very much like the one predicted for the rest of the country in about 20 years' time and helps make the Central Coast an exciting area in which to live and work.

"With extended years of life, we have the opportunity to become a showcase for new and innovative approaches to growing old, such as creative ageing," he said.

"Creative ageing impacts a person's meaning and quality of life, it builds social capital and reduces isolation.

"Liberating creativity has the potential to make people feel more alive and less reliant on medical remedies.

"Those who practice creativity may not just enjoy a richer and more fulfilling life, there may be other health and social benefits, as research is beginning to explore," Mr Fine said.

As part of his presentation Mr Fine will discuss the need for more research on the topic, including a proposal for a new National Centre of Excellence on Creative Ageing in which Macquarie and Newcastle Universities would partner with The University of Melbourne and The University of Queensland.

Mr Fine said that, with the increase of life expectancy, seniors today have new and liberating opportunities for growth and development.

"Often retirement is the first chance many people have had to learn new skills such as to play the ukulele, create films, dance, or to become a poet, sing in a choir, perform with others, paint or draw.

"These are all things that many people explore in their 60s, 70s and 80s that they didn't pursue in their youth," Mr Fine said.

SOURCE:

Media release, 14 Mar 2019

Elio Gatti, Regional Creativity and Wellbeing Seminar