U.S. National Research with Villages
About Villages & Research
Villages are “community-based, nonprofit, grassroots organizations formed through a cadre of caring neighbors who want to change the paradigm of aging” (Village to Village Network). They typically operate as membership organizations and are largely governed by community residents themselves. Villages provide supports for aging well, including services (e.g., transportation assistance, technology support), social connections, and events. Villages facilitate these supports largely through neighbors-helping-neighbors volunteer arrangements, with some supplemental assistance from paid staff and referrals to formal providers. ​
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There has been widespread enthusiasm for Villages since their founding in the early 2000s. There also has been renewed interest in advancing research on Villages at the national level., as well as coordinating local, regional, and national evaluation efforts. Such opportunities were the impetus for launching this website and the collaborative research that is underway.