Longevity Societies: Time as a Shared Resource
Longevity is one of the greatest achievements of our civilization. For centuries, humanity dreamed of living longer; today, that dream has become an expanding reality. But adding more years to life is not enough—we also need to add more life to those years. And that means rethinking everything.
At CENIE, we understand that the real transformation lies not only in the growing number of older people, but in the fact that every stage of life is changing at the same time. We have moved beyond a focus solely on aging to face a broader and more transformative phenomenon: the emergence of longevity societies.
These societies are not defined merely by age structures, but by how we organize time, relationships, work, learning, citizenship, and care. Life courses are becoming more diverse, longer, and reconfigured. This opens up new and urgent questions:
- How can we ensure fair and sustainable intergenerational coexistence?
- How should we rethink social rights to respond to longer, more varied life trajectories?
- How can we support work, education, and relationship transitions in a more longevity-driven world?
Building a longevity society means moving past outdated narratives about age and retirement, and recognizing that the time we’ve gained can also be time for contribution, learning, participation, and meaning. Retirement need not be a farewell—it can be a reinvention. And working life is no longer a straight line but a flexible map of entries, exits, returns, and new paths.
In this new paradigm, lifelong learning, labor flexibility, intergenerational equity, and the sustainability of social systems are not isolated goals—they are parts of a shared collective project. Because a society that lives longer needs institutions, norms, and cultures that can accompany that time with dignity, diversity, and purpose.
At CENIE, we promote an open and inclusive reflection on what it means to live in longevity societies. This section brings together that ongoing conversation: here, you’ll find research, analysis, proposals, and voices that help us imagine, design, and inhabit—with greater awareness—this new time that belongs to all of us.