Dear friends,

September has been a milestone month for the NIA as we celebrated our 10th anniversary and gathered to reflect on a decade of advancing research, policy, public awareness and education to improve the lives of older Canadians.

When the NIA launched in 2016, we had an ambitious vision to help Canada better prepare for an ageing population. Today, Canada is a super-aged nation, making that work more important than ever.

This month at the NIA we:

• Celebrated 10 years of the NIA, bringing together friends, colleagues, partners and supporters to reflect on our impact and look ahead.

• Released our first organizational Impact Report, highlighting a year of research, collaboration, policy development and public engagement.

• Launched the second year of our Small Steps, Big Difference national dementia public awareness campaign and released our latest dementia report, helping Canadians recognize and address memory concerns and access timely care and support.

• Advanced ageing policy priorities through our federal pre-budget submission, outlining seven recommendations to better support older Canadians.

Tomorrow, we also recognize the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. We honour residential school Survivors, their families, and those who did not come home, and reaffirm the importance of listening to Indigenous voices and advancing culturally safe and equitable approaches to ageing and care.

As we look ahead to National Seniors Day and the United Nations International Day of Older Persons on October 1, I want to thank everyone who has contributed to the NIA's journey. We have accomplished so much together and there is still much important work ahead.

Here's to the next decade of impact!

Alyssa Brierley
Executive Director
National Institute on Ageing

Thank You for Celebrating 10 Years of NIA!

Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate the National Institute on Ageing’s 10th anniversary! It was wonderful to bring together friends, colleagues, partners and supporters to reflect on a decade of impact and look ahead to the future of ageing in Canada.

We are grateful to our current and former staff, fellows, Advisory Board members, researchers, donors, funders and partners who have helped shape the NIA over the past decade. A special thank you to everyone who attended in person and virtually, shared their perspectives and contributed to an inspiring conversation about the next 10 years.

Together, we have made positive changes, and we look forward to continuing our work to improve the lives of older Canadians.

Celebrating a Year of Impact

The NIA is proud to launch its first Impact Report, highlighting the progress, partnerships and impact of our work over the past year.

From advancing research and policy solutions to bringing people together and sharing trusted information with Canadians, the report captures how the NIA is working to help build a Canada where older adults feel valued, included, supported and better prepared to age with confidence.

Over the past year, the NIA engaged 150+ stakeholders, welcomed 3,700+ participants through events and engagements, reached 2,500+ webinar attendees and generated $1.4 billion in earned media reach — to advance important work on retirement financial security, dementia and brain health, healthy ageing, caregiving and ageing in the right place.

Explore the NIA’s first Impact Report and see what we accomplished together.

Please join us in welcoming Stefanie Tan to the NIA as an Associate Fellow!

Stefanie is Vice President of Research at MedicAlert Foundation Canada, where she leads the organization’s research function, academic partnerships, research governance and ethical data stewardship. An internationally trained physician, Stefanie holds an MD from De La Salle University in Manila and an MPH from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Her research focuses on dementia safety and wandering risk, technologies that support ageing in place, and health equity for populations underserved by conventional research.

At the NIA, Stefanie’s work in collaboration with Dr. Samir Sinha and the health policy research team will focus on supporting the safety and independence of older adults ageing in the right place, particularly people living with dementia and the caregivers who support them. Their research will aim to strengthen the evidence behind digital safety technologies and the use of personal emergency response systems to better protect those most at risk.

Please join us in welcoming Shahrzad Mobasher Fard to the NIA as a Bilingual Senior Policy Analyst

Shahrzad Mobasher Fard brings nearly two decades of national and international policy expertise to her work at NIA, with a career spanning the Canadian Library of Parliament, TD Economics, the OECD, and the World Bank. She began her career as the analyst assigned to the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women at the Library of Parliament, then worked as an economist at TD Economics before serving as Canada Desk Economist at the OECD in Paris. She spent the following fourteen years at the World Bank Group working on policy-based lending and investment projects in infrastructure, health, education, and other sectors across a wide range of countries. She holds an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and a BSc in Economics from Université de Montréal.

At NIA, Shahrzad draws on this background in human development policy design to advance the Institute’s work on income adequacy, healthy ageing, and ageing in the right place — and to help build the evidence base for a federal ageing strategy that Canada currently lacks.

NIA Calls for Stronger Supports for Older Canadians in Federal Pre-Budget Submission

The NIA submitted seven recommendations to the Department of Finance to help older Canadians age with dignity, security and confidence.

Drawing on findings from the 2025 NIA Ageing in Canada Survey, the submission calls for stronger retirement income security, improved financial supports for caregivers and people with disabilities, greater investment in community-based seniors services, responsible AI regulation and stronger protections for the rights of older adults.

Key recommendations include introducing a Pension Delay Guarantee for the Canada Pension Plan, increasing the Guaranteed Income Supplement earnings exemption and making the Canada Caregiver Credit refundable.

Beyond Intimate Partners: What Ahluwalia Reveals About Coercive Control and Elder Abuse

The Supreme Court of Canada’s landmark decision in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia recognizes coercive control as a serious form of harm in intimate partner relationships.

In a new commentary for JUST, Rizwan Khan, Legal Researcher & Analyst at the NIA, and Rachel Tenn, former Articling Student at the NIA, examine what Ahluwalia means for elder abuse.

They argue that the decision should be the beginning of a broader conversation about older adults experiencing coercive control by adult children, caregivers or others in positions marked by dependence, trust and unequal power.

Older adults can experience intimidation, isolation, financial control and the erosion of autonomy in ways that may not be adequately captured by existing legal remedies.

NIA's Submission to Finance Canada

As Canada moves toward a more secure, consumer-driven banking system, the NIA is calling for the needs of older Canadians to be built into its design.

In a recent submission to Finance Canada, the NIA welcomed proposed regulations to make financial data sharing safer and more secure, while recommending stronger protections around accessibility, consent and financial abuse.

Key recommendations include:
• Plain-language consent and authentication processes
• Secure ways for trusted people to provide limited assistance
• Simple and immediate ways to revoke consent
• Training for customer-facing staff to recognize potential economic abuse
• Ageing, accessibility and financial abuse expertise in the design and implementation of the framework

As Canada moves toward a more secure, consumer-driven banking system, the NIA is calling for the needs of older Canadians to be built into its design.

This September, the NIA is launching the next phase of its national Small Steps, Big Difference campaign, encouraging Canadians to start conversations when they notice changes in their own memory, thinking or behaviours, or of someone they care about.

Talking about memory concerns can feel difficult. People may worry about upsetting a loved one, saying the wrong thing or not knowing how to begin. But you don’t need to have all the answers — starting a conversation can be an important first step.

The national campaign provides practical, easy-to-use resources, available in English and French, to help Canadians recognize potential changes, approach conversations with care and better understand what to do next.

If you’re worried about someone’s memory, a small step can make a big difference.

Visit SmallStepsBigDifference.ca  to explore the campaign and access resources.

In case you missed it, watch the NIA’s recent webinar exploring the state of dementia care in Canada and what needs to change to better support people living with dementia and their caregivers.

The conversation offers a preview of key issues explored in the NIA’s newest report, Addressing Dementia in Canada: The Current State, Challenges and Opportunities for Improving Care for People Living with Dementia

Celebrating Student Leadership in Ageing: Applications Now Open!

The NIA and Entente Education Canada are pleased to announce the 2026 Canadian Leadership in Ageing Awards, recognizing students across Canada who are making a difference in the lives of older adults.

Two awards of $1,000 each will recognise outstanding undergraduate and graduate students who have demonstrated leadership in healthy ageing through research, projects, policy development or advocacy.

Applications are open from September 21 to October 16, 2026. Help us recognize the next generation of leaders working to improve the lives of older Canadians!

The Age of Longevity: Rethinking Systems for Longer Lives

NIA Executive Director Alyssa Brierley recently joined CharityVillage Connects for a discussion on Canada’s growing volunteer shortage and what it will take to rebuild a strong culture of giving. Alongside leaders across the charitable sector, Alyssa explored the challenges organizations face in recruiting and retaining volunteers as demand for services continues to rise, and the importance of volunteerism in building stronger, more connected communities.

NIA Executive Director Alyssa Brierley joined international experts for the third edition of the Urban North webinar, Housing for an Ageing Society: Rethinking Homes, Communities, and Care.

Alongside speakers from UN-Habitat, the City of Montreal and universities in Japan and Italy, Alyssa contributed to a discussion on how we can rethink housing, communities and care to better support ageing populations.

Discover how dance can support brain health by combining physical activity, social connection and cognitive engagement. In this episode of Baycrest’s Defy Dementia podcast, hear from an older adult dancer and Dr. Rachel Bar of Canada’s National Ballet School about the benefits of dance for healthy ageing.

Listen now at defydementia.org

• October 1: The Age of Longevity: Rethinking Systems for Longer Lives: The Canadian Artists Network 

• October  1: AGE-WELL AgeTech Discovery Day

• October 15-17, 2026: Canadian Association on Gerontology, CAG 2026, Charlottetown, PEI 

• October 26-28: Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging CCNA Annual Conference 2026

• October 26-28, 2026: Healthy Aging Summit, Richmond, BC

• November 2-4, 2026: AGE-WELL Annual Conference, Ottawa, ON

• Opioid use among Ontario seniors an 'overlooked and evolving crisis': study

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TMU National Institute on Ageing Fund

Help create a Canada where older adults feel valued, included, supported and better prepared to age with confidence by making a charitable gift to the TMU National Institute on Ageing Fund today. Gifts to the TMU National Institute on Ageing Fund make a tangible impact on the future of ageing in Canada. You choose the amount. You make the difference.