WHAT IS A CAFÉ DES ÂGES?

 

The Cafés des âges are specific and non continuous forums between generations. The participants aim at working together and improving ties that are often strained. This event offers an interactive framework for the different action takers (citizens, elected members, field operators, scholars, retired people, community groups, families).

The challenge consists of bringing out ideas, one common idea actually, that could in the end lead to a renewed contract between generations. The Cafés des âges therefore represent an exceptional tool within the context of the 2009-2010 Intergenerational Meeting Places.

Through their different local and regional formats, the Cafés des âges will offer all participants a better mutual understanding, ease collective actions, and bring out synergies that are likely to influence public politics.

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE CAFÉS DES ÂGES

The Cafés des âges are an initiative of the French association Vieillir c’est vivre, which is presided over by Paulette Guinchard, former Seniors’ Minister in the Jospin Government. As soon as they were launched in 2005, the Cafés des âges proved to be an enormous success in France, all over the French‑speaking world and elsewhere. To this day, over 2,500 Cafés des âges have been held throughout the world.

In Québec, the citizens’ network ESPACES 50+ is responsible for the first two Cafés des âges held in Montréal in 2008. The Intergenerational Meeting Places, operated by the Institut du Nouveau Monde, will take over as of the summer of 2009.

HOW DOES A CAFÉ DES ÂGES TAKE PLACE?

The initiative can come from a municipality, a local institution, a community group, a seniors’ club or group, a citizens’ assembly, a public service (health, education or cultural activities), etc.

For their first Café des âges, the organizers can count on the help of the INM to prepare the event and its leadership. The leaders invite all interested people to participate in a discussion meeting (maximum length of 1h30) on the subject of the call‑out Vieillir, c’est vivre : dites-le, about the intergenerational relations or a general or local citizen’s theme. The distribution of the invitation will mobilize the organizers, a venue is then reserved, and refreshments prepared.

Within the context of the Cafés des âges, the organizers commit to respecting the principle of “neutrality” towards potential personal, sectional, professional or other interests, and above all economic or those of partisanship.

The nomination and finding of a Café des âges leader able to conduct the debates (meeting conduct management, respect of objectives and time, speech movement, facilitation of listening between participants, ability to stand back; to analyze; to rephrase and to summarize, etc.) are all conditions of a successful Café des âges.

Following the Café des ages event the organizers commit to submitting a content report to the INM, who will compile the reports for later distribution amongst the decision makers and other action takers. A quality label will in return be supplied by the INM to the organizers.

A Café des âges does not cost anything more than the willingness of the citizens: the venue can often be reserved for free and the leader is a volunteer. The participants are asked to donate one or two dollars before leaving in order to pay for the costs of the ad, broadcasting and supplies.