Think vertical, says Kate Jerome. Make connections between generations—it’s the best kind of problem solving: mutually beneficial, easy and not costly to do. By harnessing the interpersonal engine that intergenerational connection empowers, young people gain wisdom and emotional support and older people gain a feeling of relevance and purpose, and both thrive. Kate’s talk presents compelling evidence and touching stories about how a little ingenuity and old fashioned companionship can make the aging process more meaningful and vibrant.

Kate Jerome was the former president of the Scott Foresman Publishing Company and is an award-winning children’s book author. A 2015 Fellow in Stanford University’s Distinguished Career Institute, her association with Stanford’s well-respected Center on Longevity gave her an even broader perspective on the needs of our aging population and the cultural changes necessary to support a longer life journey for all. As a result, Kate now spends her time developing new tools, programs and mindsets to encourage what she views as critical “vertical connections” between generations.