Pontifical Academy for Life signs elderly care declaration with Muslim council, AARP

Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia speaks at a press conference for a Vatican summit on longevity on March 24, 2025, at the Vatican. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 21, 2025 / 15:22 pm (CNA).

The Pontifical Academy for Life, the elderly advocacy group AARP, and the Muslim Council of Elders this month signed a declaration promising to support elderly populations and promote research on brain health. 

The organizations launched the initiative in order to help safeguard the elderly from discrimination and abuse and to protect their human dignity, right to independence, and engagement in society. 

The leaders met at a two-day global symposium held at the Vatican titled “The Memory: Addressing the Opportunities and Challenges of an Aging Global Population.”

Representatives from the Vatican and AARP talked with doctors, scientists, academics, nongovernmental organizations, and nonprofits from more than 20 countries about the future of the elderly population and how organizations can advocate for older generations.

“We promote this symposium in partnership with AARP to reflect with scientific and academic institutions on how to promote a model of longevity that does not limit itself to extending the years of life but to enriching them,” Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, said at the summit.

The event concluded with Paglia, AARP CEO Myechia Minter-Jordan, and Muslim Council of Elders Secretary-General Mohamed Abdelsalam signing the official declaration pledging their commitment to the mission.

The “landmark initiative marks the first official activity of the Vatican under Pope Leo XIV,”  Abdelsalam wrote in a post to X.

“Caring for the elderly is a religious and moral responsibility, as they are the memory keepers of human societies,” he wrote. “They serve as a living record for transmitting wisdom and knowledge across generations.”

The event and declaration were spearheaded by the leaders to help plan for future demographic shifts. 

“By 2050, 1 in 5 people worldwide will be over the age of 60,” AARP reported. “Globally, systems and supports are not in place to handle the unique needs of a rapidly aging population.”

“Aging is not a problem to solve,” Minter-Jordan said at the event. “It is an opportunity to rethink how we support our communities.”