By 2050, one in three people in Europe will be over 60. For care systems, that is a strain; for the economy, it is a market already growing faster than most other sectors. Łukasiewicz – PORT answers both with Senior Living: an open agreement meant to connect scientific research with the real needs of older adults, and whose directions the signatories will define together.
The initiative begins with a letter of intent that new entities can join right now. The document imposes no financial obligations and does not restrict the independent activity of the parties — it sets out a declaration of cooperation. Łukasiewicz – PORT is the coordinator of the initiative, the initiator of the agreement, and the host of the infrastructure.
An ecosystem, not standalone projects
Senior Living brings research, pilots, deployment, education, services, and acceleration together in one environment, all built around solutions for long, active, and comfortable living. The initiative draws on the international experience of mature markets in longevity and the silver economy). Instead of a ready-made program, it offers an open format: areas of cooperation are meant to emerge from conversations among signatories, from the exchange of information about ongoing projects, and from spotting common ground.
Who can join the initiative
Signatories may be institutions as well as individuals or informal groups. The invitation is addressed to investors and partners developing the silver economy, medtech and biotech companies, providers of senior care, assisted living, and rehabilitation services, universities and research teams, hospitals and clinical entities, health-technology startups, producers of food, supplements, and cosmetics, and to local governments, public institutions, and social organizations.
Accession is public and voluntary. Signatories gain access to the experts and research infrastructure of Łukasiewicz – PORT, the Pracze Campus as an environment for pilots and Living Labs, and a place in working groups and joint grant applications.
The genius loci of the Pracze Campus
The setting is no accident. In the late 19th century, the Wrocław authorities built a self-sufficient care-and-treatment complex on this site, designed not only to treat residents but to keep them active — through work in the gardens and a share in the daily life of the center. The first buildings, designed by Richard Plüddemann and Karl Klimm, were completed in 1896 and still form a coherent urban layout amid expansive greenery.
The initiative takes up that 19th-century idea of an integrated center for care and activity anew, this time with the tools of 21st-century science. Senior Living also draws on the concept of the social responsibility of science, which Łukasiewicz – PORT pursues by building bridges between research and societal needs and supporting intergenerational dialogue.
How to join the Senior Living initiative
To join, read the letter of intent, complete the declaration of accession, and send the signed document to sekretariat@port.lukasiewicz.gov.pl. Cooperation begins immediately after the letter is signed, with a long-term horizon — and its shape depends on who joins Senior Living, and with what idea.
The document is available on the website.
