How communities can build climate resilience and social inclusion through age-friendly, nature-based solutions

These lessons come from community garden projects in Mexico City and Bogota, where older people and other community members worked together to make neighbourhoods more resilient to climate change. With support from local partner organisations, they co-designed improvements that enhanced accessibility, strengthened social connections and supported local ecosystems. These experiences informed the resources featured in this article. This collection of resources from HelpAge International, developed in partnership with Fundación Placemaking Mexico and with support from Age International, demonstrates why age-friendly, nature-based solutions matter, how communities can implement them, and what they look like in practice. Together, they offer a practical roadmap for creating places where people and nature can thrive side by side.  

Why community gardens matter 

Climate change, poor urban design, lack of green spaces, poverty and ageism often combine to undermine wellbeing and resilience, particularly for older people. Yet community gardens show how these challenges can be addressed simultaneously. 

HelpAge’s report Growing Wellbeing and Resilience Together highlights how inclusive green spaces can create social, environmental and health benefits. They provide opportunities for social connection, physical activity and lifelong learning while creating green spaces that help communities adapt to climate change.  

Community members in Colombia and Mexico described community gardens as places where they could build friendships, share skills, improve mental wellbeing and reconnect with nature. 

The community gardens also deliver practical climate benefits. People involved in the community garden initiatives reported increases in biodiversity, greater environmental awareness and access to healthy food. By introducing more vegetation into urban neighbourhoods, community gardens can help reduce heat, support pollinators, improve air quality and strengthen local resilience to climate-related risks. 

Importantly, community gardens challenge stereotypes about ageing. Rather than being passive recipients of support, older people become leaders, teachers, organisers and advocates in their communities. 

How communities can put these ideas into practice 

To help communities turn these principles into action, HelpAge and its partners developed the Age-Inclusive Nature-Based Climate Adaptation Guide. The practical guide brings together age-friendly approaches with ecosystem-based adaptation, enabling local groups to design projects that benefit both people and nature. 

The guide outlines a five-step process: 

• Preparation and community selection 
• Community engagement 
• Participatory climate and age-friendly assessments 
• Development of an action plan 
• Implementation of small-scale urban projects. 

Projects can range from community gardens and green spaces to shaded public areas and other nature-based improvements that reduce climate risks while promoting social participation and wellbeing. 

At the heart of the approach is meaningful participation. The guide emphasises that older people are rights holders, knowledge holders and active contributors to resilience. It encourages communities to combine local knowledge with climate evidence, engage different generations, and ensure that women and other marginalised groups are included in decision-making. 

What this looks like in practice: Brisas del Volador, Colombia 

The community of Brisas del Volador in Bogota offers a powerful example of how age-friendly, nature-based solutions can transform neighbourhoods. Located in a hillside area facing environmental degradation, landslide risks and limited access to services, the community wanted to create a safer, more inclusive environment for older residents. 

Working with HelpAge and partners, a community action group made up primarily of older people, most of them women, transformed two vacant plots into thriving age-friendly community gardens. Through participatory workshops, climate assessments and collaboration with local authorities, residents designed gardens that combined ecological restoration with accessibility and inclusion. 

The gardens incorporated raised planting beds, accessible pathways, handrails, seating areas, signage, climbing plants and greater biodiversity. These features made it easier for older people to participate actively while also improving environmental outcomes. 

The results were far-reaching. The project restored urban green spaces, increased plant diversity, strengthened social cohesion and improved food security. Community members reported increased confidence, stronger social connections and greater understanding of climate change adaptation. 

The initiative also demonstrated how older people can shape effective, sustainable climate action when given opportunities to lead and participate. 

A model for resilient and inclusive communities 

Taken together, these three resources tell a single story: communities do not have to choose between climate action and social inclusion. By combining age-friendly principles with nature-based solutions, it is possible to achieve both. 

The evidence shows that community gardens can improve wellbeing, foster a sense of belonging and help neighbourhoods adapt to climate change. The practical guide provides a pathway for replication. And the experience of Brisas del Volador demonstrates that, when older people are placed at the centre of decision-making, communities can create innovative solutions that benefit everyone. 

As communities worldwide seek ways to respond to a changing climate, these examples offer a simple but powerful lesson: resilience grows strongest when people and nature thrive together. 

To learn more about the project and the communities involved, visit the project page (available in Spanish).