Facilitating intergenerational dialogue : Ageing in rural places

This chapter focuses on the key issues encountered by older people living in rural and remote areas of Australia and examined the challenges facing farming families, whose livelihoods have been impacted by globalisation, climate change and drought. A range of complex issues facing older farming families, including loss of farm income leading to a delay in retirement age, and intergenerational issues involved in succession planning, have been highlighted. Older people in rural areas are vulnerable to both the disadvantages associated with rural living and those associated with ageing. The concept of rurality is important, as it determines the ways in which older people think about their identity and their everyday lives, and this is particularly true for those who both live and work on the land. Practitioners working with older people in rural and remote areas must also deal with significant practical dilemmas.