AWARD-GIVING CEREMONY OF THE “IMPRONTE” (FOOTPRINTS) PROJECT AIMED AT FAVORING ACTIVE AGING AND INCLUSION

PAT/FBK press release of  6/1/2017

The game was led by a dozen senior citizens from the “Contrada Larga” Center. A small revolution, carried on through the “Impronte” project, promoted by Fondazione Bruno Kessler and the Province Government to promote healthy lifestyles in the elderly population.

On Thursday, June 1, the “Contrada Larga” Elderly Services Center in via Belenzani, hosted the award-giving ceremony, with the Town Councillor for Health and Social Policies, Luca Zeni: “Longer life and the aging of the population represent a victory for society only if, at the same time, we are able to guarantee a good quality of life and health, “commented Councillor Zeni in rewarding the participants. This is why working on lifestyles and relationships is essential. ‘Impronte‘ has brought older people together, working on motivation, stimuli and even fun. Elders, during a one-month long experimentation, took thousands of steps every day, got used to hanging out together and working together to achieve their goal. This is an important result, now we want to extend this experiment to other contexts, to make ever larger slices of citizenship aware of how important the social context, relationship, physical activity and good health are for the years ahead. ”

The two teams, Lepre and Pié Veloce, in three weeks of games exceeded 300,000 steps per person, overall over 3.6 million, a remarkable achievement. The winner was the Lepre team, which took just a few steps more than Pie Veloce.

“Impronte“is part of a series of initiatives promoted by FBK ( eHealth Research Unit) In collaboration with the TrentinoSalute4.0 Digital Healthcare Competence Center, The Provincial Department of Health and Social Solidarity, to encourage active aging. Specifically, the project is based on geocaching, an outdoor recreational activity, which includes the use of ICT technology. The goal is to promote the physical, mental and social well-being of a group of elderly people, as well as to give them the opportunity to acquire and improve their digital skills and to fill the generational gap, thanks also to the involvement of younger generations.

“Impronte” has found fertile ground in the “Contrada Larga” Senior Services Center, run by Kaleidoscopio Scs operators, where a number of activities have recently been launched to involve older people in the use of technology and exercise. This includes technology literacy courses, training sessions on the use of online public services (such as TreC and the Online Library), workout plans for seniors, dance, brain training games. About ten people participated in the project, who during the spring months first acquired the necessary knowledge, and later on formed the teams and organized the outings. The program will continue during the summer with the involvement of a number of schools.

Further information at: https://progettoimpronte.wordpress.com/