The United Nations 12th Session of the Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing was held from 11 to 14 April 2022 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. The Session focuses on the contribution of older persons to sustainable development and economic security, awareness and protection of the human rights and dignity of older persons. The participants included officials of the UN, permanent missions of member states, representatives of Inter-Governmental Organizations (IGOs), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and experts in relevant areas etc. The World Eco-Design Conference (WEDC) is invited to participate in the Session by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA).

The aging population of the world is growing, and issues associated with aging have become critical and challenging. Compared with other age groups, the digital divide incurred by rapid development of science and technology, prejudice and negative stereotypes against the elderly might cause lower perception of the competence of older persons. They are neglected in discussions, analysis and decision makings of major events, which undermines their authority, productivity and significant contributions made to the sustainable development.

During the United Nations 12th Session of the Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing, representatives of member states exchanged edgy approaches in terms of the development of pension industry, formulation of aging policy, aging services etc., and shared optimization ideas on solutions to aging. This further promotes and protects the human rights and dignity of older persons, facilitates the development of pension industry and the sustainability for the society, and improves the well-beings of different age groups. 

The WEDC will continue to focus on finding solutions to address the issues associated with aging, carry out accessible design for the elderly by integrating science, technology, and the philosophy of interdisciplinarity with features of the elderly. By transforming the technology into practical solutions, to enhance the quality of life and boost the happiness for the older persons, so that they can more easily to integrate with the society in the age of high technology, get access to humanity-centered design, and respect from the society.

In the future, the WEDC will continue to promote the integration and sustainable development of design, ecology and society by getting more involvements with the affairs and conferences of the UN and  further cooperation and exchange, thus jointly accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN.