International Council on Active Aging

05/01/2026

This week at the ICAA Culinary, Nutrition and Hospitality Think Tank, an innovative idea emerged: a Senior Living at a mall or event. This concept serves as a strategic tool for repositioning senior living. Instead of reshaping perceptions through traditional messaging, it offers a live, immersive experience that invites engagement in an unexpected manner.

Food acts as the entry point—universally understood, emotionally resonant, and immediately tangible. This approach bypasses the assumptions that often define senior living, establishing a fresh reference point grounded in quality, connection, and relevance.

What do you think of this idea? Have you tried it?

Thank you to our sponsors Sysco, CCL Hospitality Group NEXDINE Hospitality

Our next Think Tank is scheduled for November. If you are interested in attending or becoming a sponsor, please direct message me. Participation is open to multi-location operators of senior living and active adult communities, specifically targeting CEOs, COOs, Presidents, Owners, VPs, National Directors, or those in charge of culinary service across all communities.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/reframing-senior-livingone-bite-time-colin-milner-1jtpe/?trackingId=mK3pQGwxTem9IvkkiZlX8w%3D%3D

04/30/2026

04/24/2026

The model is changing. Is culinary keeping up?

As senior living transitions to a wellness-based model, dining has evolved beyond merely feeding people. It now focuses on creating experiences that are meaningful, engaging, and worth living.

However, many culinary systems were designed primarily for consistency, cost control, and compliance—not for autonomy, identity, or experience. This tension represents the future of culinary in senior living.

In a wellness-based community, food serves as a powerful daily expression of choice, control, and connection. Therefore, culinary must transform from a back-of-house function into a front-line driver of culture, experience, and measurable outcomes.

This is not about better menus; it’s about redefining the role of culinary entirely.

To address this shift, we are hosting the ICAA Culinary, Nutrition and Hospitality Think Tank in Charlotte on April 29. Our goal is not to improve existing systems but to ensure that the culinary vision aligns with the model we are moving toward.

There are still a couple of spaces available. If you are a CEO, COO, President, or lead culinary services in senior living across multiple locations and wish to help shape this evolution, please send a direct message to see if this is the right opportunity for you.

04/23/2026

A RADICAL VIEW OF SENIOR LIVING

What will the senior living experience look like in 2036?

Answering that question requires radical thinking.

Not incremental improvement. Not optimization of what already exists. But the willingness to challenge foundational beliefs, discard inherited constraints, and design entirely new ways of understanding what senior living can be.

Radical thinking is what entrepreneurs use to create entirely new markets—not just better versions of old ones.

The greatest barrier to this kind of thinking? Legacy thinking. You know it well—the gravitational pull of “the way things have always been.”

That’s why the upcoming ICAA Wellness Think Tank in Charlotte, NC matters.

The International Council on Active Aging has invited 55 senior living thought leaders to come together to reimagine the future—and define what the experience of senior living could look like in 2036.

This is not a conference. It’s a working session.

CEOs, presidents, VPs, and national directors from multi-location senior living providers will collaborate to identify the gap between today’s model and tomorrow’s opportunity—and begin crafting the roadmap to close it.

If you’re in the area and want to be part of shaping—not reacting to—the future, we have two seats remaining.

If you’re an industry partner looking to engage at the highest level, there is still a narrow window to participate as a sponsor.

Let your radical side out.

Join us at the ICAA Wellness Think Tank—because the future isn’t something you wait for. It’s something you design.

Direct message us if you’d like to learn more.

04/23/2026

ICAA NuStep "Best in Wellness Awards"—What you need to know!

If wellness is more than a program—if it’s the foundation of how you operate, lead, and deliver the resident experience—then it’s time to be recognized. The ICAA NuStep Beacon and Pinnacle Awards honor organizations that are not just participating in the shift to wellness—but leading it.

This year, the Senior Living Community Award features updated criteria that reflect where the industry is headed. Communities will be evaluated not only on what they offer, but on how deeply wellness is embedded into daily life—shaping culture, environment, and measurable outcomes. This is your opportunity to stand out for what truly differentiates your organization.

As you prepare your application, think like an investigative journalist. Go beyond listing activities—tell the full story. Show how wellness comes to life across your community, how it is sustained, and the impact it creates for residents and staff. If your organization spans multiple locations, remember that each community is evaluated independently and must submit its own application.

Now is the time to step forward. Choose your category, follow the application guidelines, and upload your materials—including images—through the portal.

Enter. Get recognized. Set the standard for what senior living can be.

https://beaconaward.icaa.cc/application.php

NuStep, LLC

04/22/2026

Join our team in the fight against Alzheimer’s—because every dollar brings us closer to a breakthrough

Alzheimer’s is not someone else’s challenge—it’s one that touches our residents and members, our families, and our future.

For more than five years, the International Council on Active Aging® (ICAA) and its members (you) have come together to take action in the fight against Alzheimer’s—turning commitment into real impact.

Together, we have already raised over $675,000 in support of the Alzheimer’s Association.

Now, as ICAA celebrates its 25th anniversary, we are setting our sights on a bold milestone:

$1,000,000 raised—recognized at the ICAA Conference & Expo.

But reaching that goal will take all of us.

Join our team. Host an event. Make a pledge. Mobilize your community. Because progress doesn’t happen by chance—it happens when people choose to act.

Everyone we serve—and everyone we love—benefits from what we do next.

https://events.alz.org/fundraisers/internationalcouncilonactiveaging

04/21/2026

Hitting the streets soon is the latest edition of our Journal on Active Aging. The content for this issue includes the following:

- Colin Milner: Personal perspectives on ICAA’s 25 years of changing the way we age
- Physical activity in wellness communities: Wisdom from ICAA NuStep Best in Wellness Award winners
- Food is Medicine
- Doug Leidig: Providing opportunities to live your best life at
-Integrating power training into older-adult programs, part two.

You can learn more about the Journal at https://www.icaa.cc/journal.php

04/17/2026

2036: RETHINKING THE SENIOR LIVING EXPERIENCE.

What will the senior living experience be in 2036? Will it still be defined by the

care it provides—or by the life it enables? If it’s the latter, then the real question becomes: What needs to change today to bring that experience to life?

At the ICAA Wellness Think Tank on April 28 in Charlotte, we’re opening with a conversation designed to challenge assumptions and redefine the future. What happens when technology and wellness are no longer layered onto senior living, but become the foundation of the experience itself?

We’ve brought together two leaders shaping that future:

-Stephen Ewell, Executive Director, Consumer Technology Association Foundation, who is driving the intersection of AgeTech, accessibility, and independence—where technology becomes infrastructure for living well, not just managing decline.

-Susie Arnett, Director of Wellness Programming, Six Senses, who is redefining environments as experiences—where wellness, connection, and purpose are intentionally designed into every moment of daily life.

Together, they represent the convergence of two forces that will define the next era: technology that enables continuous, intelligent living and wellness that shapes the experience, culture, and value proposition.

This is not about improving the current model; it’s about replacing it. A few spots are still open. If you are a CEO, COO, President, VP, or National Director of

Wellness, Lifestyle, or Therapy at a multi-location senior living organization, you will not want to miss this conversation.

A sincere thank you to our sponsors for supporting this important dialogue: Humana, Buck Institute for Research on Aging, Keiser, SportsArt, Matrix, and Lifeloop.

Senior living in 2036 will not be defined by the care it provides—but by the life it enables.

To learn more, please direct message us here on LinkedIn

Keiser Corporation, Matrix Fitness USA , Humana, Buck Institute for Research on Aging, LifeLoop, SportsArt, International Council on Active Aging

04/15/2026

What does it really mean to live better longer?

In this episode of Foresight Radio, Steve Moran sits down with Colin Milner , CEO of the International Council on Active Aging, to explore one of the biggest questions facing the senior living industry:

Is senior living ready to become the real-world delivery system for longevity?

Colin has spent decades challenging traditional ideas about aging and wellness. In this conversation, he shares why senior living communities are uniquely positioned to help older adults thrive—but also why many communities still fall short of delivering on that promise.

Steve and Colin dive into topics including:

• What “living better longer” actually means in real life
• Why senior living must shift from care-first to wellness-first
• The difference between real wellness programs and “wellness washing”
• Why connection, identity, and community experience matter more than amenities
• How senior living communities can design environments that support purpose, autonomy, and longevity

They also explore what the future senior living experience could look like by 2036, including intergenerational communities, environments designed for connection, and why the best communities may feel less like institutions and more like home.

If you're a senior living operator, industry leader, or someone thinking about the future of aging, this episode offers a fresh and honest perspective on where the industry is headed—and where it still needs to go.

In this episode, Steve Moran sits down with Colin Milner to explore one of the biggest questions facing the senior living industry.

04/06/2026

A trend to be aware of in 2026: Science-washing

As the older adult population grows, so will the volume of claims promising longevity breakthroughs. We must ensure that the pursuit of longer life is guided by evidence, integrity and realism.

04/01/2026

Did you know that stopping food three hours before bed and slightly lengthening an overnight fast improved blood pressure, heart rhythms, and blood-sugar control in adults at risk for cardiometabolic disease, a study from Northwestern Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, found.

You can read more about this at https://www.icaa.cc/industrynews/2026-03/GIVE-ME-A-BREAK-Stopping-eating-three-hours-before-bed-boosts-heart-health.htm

03/30/2026

Many individuals encounter at least one person in their lives—be it a lingering ex, a toxic friend, a rude neighbor, or a frustrating colleague—who contributes to their stress.

Recent research indicates that these 'hasslers' can have a profound impact on health. They can elevate stress levels and potentially accelerate biological aging by 1.5 percent. This means your 'internal age,' which represents the health of your cells, could be greater than your actual chronological age.

The consequences are significant. A higher internal age suggests that your cells are deteriorating at an accelerated rate, which is associated with chronic diseases like cancer and dementia. Assessing your relationships may be a vital step in enhancing your health and extending your life expectancy.

According to a team from New York University, "Each additional hassler is associated with faster biological aging.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/wellness/time-to-cut-out-that-toxic-ex-difficult-people-in-your-life-age-you-1-5-faster-study-warns/ar-AA1XU9Ku?apiversion=v2&domshim=1&noservercache=1&noservertelemetry=1&batchservertelemetry=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1

International Council on Active Aging

Having a difficult person in your life could be ageing you quicker, according to a new study.