This event is sponsored by the Institute for Public Health & the Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging and is being uplifted by the Gephardt Institute as part of Engage Democracy 2024. Please visit the associated site to RSVP and find more information. 

Location: Simon Hall 017

Join us for an intergenerational discussion between older adults in St. Louis and WashU students centered around how to have productive political conversations. The goal of this event is to teach both younger students and older adults how to effectively communicate while facing the challenges of information spread on social media, ageism, and intergenerational political polarization. A pizza and salad dinner will be provided.

This event will feature two speakers. First, Brian Carpenter, PhD, a Psychological and Brain Sciences professor and co-director of the Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging will speak on ageism in the election and the importance of forming intergenerational connections. Second, Amy Gais, PhD, a professor of political science at WashU, will talk about effective political conversations and who will help facilitate the discussion. Following the speakers, older adults and students will be mixed into random groups at roundtables and given a series of topics/questions to discuss.

Topics include:

• Older adults giving younger students advice about how to stay informed
• Younger students discussing the influence of the media and social media
• How to have effective conversations about politics
• The importance of remaining informed and staying involved in community
• The importance of voting