CEPAR, the Centre for Population Ageing Research, has been awarded $27.25 million dollars in national competitive research funding to continue its research into one of Australia’s most pressing issues – our ageing population. The Centre will investigate the economic and social challenges of population ageing over the next seven years.
CEPAR is the only Centre of Excellence to be hosted by a Business School. It is a collaboration involving five Australian universities, the University of Manchester, the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton School. Industry and government partners include major Commonwealth policy departments, large corporates, and the NSW Government. CEPAR also has strong support and engagement with the World Bank, OECD and COTA. Together, this powerful coalition will contribute over $40 million in additional cash and in-kind support.
Sharon Parker, Director of the Centre for Transformative Work Design, is a CI in the extended CEPAR. She will lead one of the four research streams, Organisations and the Mature Workforce.
An ageing population means that it is vital that people stay in work longer. The research will look at how to ensure that work is meaningful and healthy for mature workers, as well as how to reduce discrimination and stereotypes about older workers. A further important topic of enquiry concerns what organisations can do to support mature workers (usually women) who need to care for elderly dependents at the same time as working.