Meeting the Other

Abstract

The idea that we are living in a society which is more and more segregated according to age is often voiced today. A feeling of facing a widening generation gap is mirrored in writings from governmental offices and non-governmental organizations in Sweden and in other parts of the world. The UNESCO Institute of Education's (UIE) conference in 1999 about Intergenerational Practice and Programmes (IP) is one example of the efforts made to analyse the gap between generations. In the declaration from the conference a definition of intergenerational programmes: “Intergenerational programmes are vehicles for purposeful and ongoing exchange of resources and learning among older and younger generations for individual and social benefits and is given as well as guiding principles for future intergenerational projects.”1 An account of ongoing intergenerational projects in different countries is also included (Hutton-Yeo & Ohsako, 2000:3). The authors point out that there is a need to move from the traditional one-way IP (the young learning from the old) to IP based upon reciprocal relationships between different generations. They also underline the need to further develop non-familial IPs where biologically unrelated members of different ages interact (Hutton-Yeo & Ohsako, 2000:4–6). The Swedish drafting committee about issues of ageing and life in later years, “Senior 2005,” points out that research and exchange of the experience regarding the potentialities of intergenerational encounters should be encouraged and reinforced. Only few such projects in Sweden have been accounted for. Boström states in her dissertation that in spite of the fact that many minor projects are carried out by voluntary organisations, interest groups, and enthusiastic individuals, most of these are not analysed and remain undocumented (Boström, 2003). The present article reports about a Swedish project aiming at a rapprochement between the generations. After a short presentation of the organisation in charge of the project, the different parts of the project are described. A discussion of the observations made in the course of the project is followed by an introduction of some theoretical concepts and ideas and the observations that are analysed and explained.