POLICY BRIEF
Creative Aging in the Healthy Aging Ecosystem: Advancing Brain Health, Social Connectedness, and Livable Communities
February 2026 | Gretchen Alkema
This policy brief lays out a bold, evidence-based case for embedding creative aging in America’s healthy aging agenda—highlighting its impact on brain health, social connectedness, and livable communities, and offering clear policy recommendations for cross-sector leaders.
Executive Summary
Creative engagement through the arts is fundamental to the human experience and deeply linked to enhanced health and well-being. Specifically older adults serve as unique and essential cultural contributors across all art forms, enriching their communities and gaining first-hand benefit from active arts participation. Building on a wealth of health promotion research, creative aging is the practice of intentional artistic and creative engagement throughout our lives—advancing vital ways to help restore and maximize health and functional ability regardless of one’s age, health status, or perceived capabilities. While creative aging is a growing field in the community and health care landscape, commonly held barrier mindsets often distort the value of both the arts and older adults—limiting awareness and subsequent investment.
The much-anticipated growth and variation of America’s older adult population is being coupled with a wide-ranging policy and care delivery response at federal, state, and local levels. As public and private sector leaders redesign services for today’s and tomorrow’s older adults, three trending issues shape the healthy aging agenda: brain health, social connectedness, and livable communities. Across these three issues and where they converge, creative aging contributes distinctive and valuable strategies that support holistic healthy aging for individuals, communities, and society.
This policy brief makes the case to incorporate creative aging more intentionally into the healthy aging ecosystem through three recommendations and will include an upcoming Action Plan Framework. Stay informed about this framework and other policy field updates via our mailing list.
Recommendations
1. Elevate Awareness
Elevate awareness of creative aging and its significant linkage to healthy aging among cross-sector local, state, and federal leaders with emphasis on trending issues of brain health, social connectedness, and livable communities.
2. Embed in Policy
Embed creative aging principles and attributes in federal and state policy plans and implementation efforts that are centered on healthy aging with specific ties to brain health, social connectedness, and livable communities.
3. Expand Investment
Accelerate diffusion of and investment in creative aging efforts within health and aging-focused service landscapes, particularly in the private sector, which seek improvements in brain health, social connectedness, and livable communities.
What’s Next? More Creative Aging Policy Resources.
The Action Plan Framework
Coming This Spring!
This framework will outline a three-year roadmap for advancing creative aging through policy, partnerships, and measurable outcomes.
LinkedIn Live Policy Brief Convo
Wednesday, March 4th
Join us during our free LinkedIn Live event as we introduce the policy brief and explore what’s inside.
Policy Brief Deep-Dive Webinar
Wednesday, March 25th
You’ve got the brief—now let’s put it to work. Save the date and join us as we explore strategies for maximizing its impact. Registration is coming soon!
Acknowledgements
This report was generously supported by a grant from the The Music Man Foundationand written by Gretchen Alkema, PhD, president of Wolf Eagle Enterprises, LLC — a strategic engagement firm that delivers clear-eyed insights and resource-conscious solutions to health, aging, and care delivery industries. We wholeheartedly thank our Policy Advisory Working Group who provided valuable perspective and feedback throughout the development of this brief.
Advisory Working Group: Liz Briscoe, Aging and Health Affinity Groups Coordinator, Maryland Philanthropy Network; Paige Cooke, M.S., Founder & Principal Healthcare Quality & Policy Consultant, APIQ Consulting, LLC; Rob Ence, Executive Director, Utah Commission on Aging; Dr. Jill Sonke, US Cultural Policy Fellow, Stanford University, University of Florida; Erin Westphal, Director of Policy, Programs, and Operations, The SCAN Foundation
