Changing Eating Habits for Healthy and Sustainable Ageing

<< Background >>Why? Firstly, we recognized the pressing global imperative to foster healthy, active, and sustainable lifestyles for all, particularly amongst seniors, a demographic often overlooked and underserved, with limited access to essential information compared to younger generations. As an organization dedicated to serving seniors, we felt compelled to address this disparity. Secondly, while Acufade enjoys a well-established reputation within the Canary Islands, our presence on the international stage was comparatively modest. We saw the ERASMUS+ small-scale project as an ideal opportunity to showcase our expertise and establish valuable connections while enriching our own understanding through collaboration with more experienced institutions from SLO and ITA.Needs addressed:-Need to provide support for seniors and empower them with knowledge to maintain their autonomy, activity, and well-being.-Need to provide prevention measures Recognizing the significant impact of unhealthy eating habits on disease prevalence.-Need to raise environmental consciousness among seniors.-Need to broaden perspectives on nutrition by including novel concepts such as mindfulness.-Need to foster mutual learning and capacities of partners involved.<< Objectives >>Our objectives were:(1)to train and educate seniors on how to change nutrition habits and to raise their awareness on the importance of healthy food and nutrition for health and environment.(2)to increase capacities and quality of work related to nutrition, among organizations working with seniors.(3)to disseminate results on transnational level and to build transnational competence of participating organizations.The focus was on three topics:a) healthy food and nutrition as a key element to prevent dependencies and diseases, b) healthy food and nutrition as an element for sustainable and eco-friendly life c) importance of emotional awareness (mindfulness training) in changing nutrition habits. << Implementation >>Activity 1: Managed project logistics and communications, including documentation, timelines, and reporting to the national agency and ERASMUS+ platform.Activity 2: Reviewed 40+ past projects as a base for curriculum development, incorporating relevant findings into project guidelines.Activity 3: Developed curriculum on healthy eating for seniors, covering disease prevention, emotional awareness, and eco-friendly practices, with a learning exchange in Ljubljana.Activity 4: Engaged 180 seniors across Slovenia, Spain, and Italy through 9 workshops and 3 study visits, with evaluations conducted to assess impact.Activity 5: Produced CONVIDA+ guidance and a multilingual cookbook, facilitating knowledge transfer and dissemination among partners and beyond.Activity 6: Promoted the project through social media, websites, and national events (which attracted more than 200 individuals), culminating in a final conference in Tenerife.<< Results >>We successfully delivered all planned outcomes outlined in our application form. These tangible results include:- A comprehensive list of previous projects and accompanying materials for reference.- A curriculum covering three key nutrition topics, available in four languages to facilitate replication of similar workshops.- An English manual summarizing main project outcomes, findings, and feedback.- Implementation of nine workshops and three study visits across all participating countries.- Organization of three impactful (inter)national multiplier events, one in each partner country.- Two in-person learning exchanges held in Ljubljana and Tenerife. The first exchange focused on sharing knowledge about nutrition, while the second facilitated experience-sharing and the definition of follow-up activities.- Creation of a cookbook in four languages, ready for distribution among target groups.- A robust dissemination campaign spanning websites, newsletters, social media platforms, and active participation in relevant events.