First Columbia Aging Workshop

On November 11, the Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute and the Columbia Aging Center joined forces to present the first Columbia Aging Workshop “The Aging of Mind, Brain and Behavior in Context”. More than 50 Columbia researchers – as well as President Bollinger and other University administrators – attended the workshop that highlighted the University’s commitment to advancing interdisciplinary research on aging. Read more

Annual Lecture at Tsao Foundation

Ursula Staudinger was invited for the second time by the Tsao Foundation to deliver the charity’s annual lecture on ageing and productivity. In her key note she emphasized that old age and productivity can indeed go very well together. However, according to her research the “mindset of a company” is a crucial determinant of productivity. “If everyone believes these (older) workers are less productive and this is reinforced by supervisors and company leaders, then this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy,” she said. Thus, companies and countries alike must begin to focus on “qualitative growth”. This essentially means an investment in each individual by raising the health and educational level so that people are more motivated to work – and do well in their jobs even in their later years. Read more