Relational Social Work, Eco-Social Approaches, and Participatory Methods: Building Climate-Resilient Neighbourhoods with Older Adults
Sigrid Mairhofer
Climate change poses significant risks to older adults, who face heightened vulnerability to extreme heat. Yet climate vulnerability in later life is shaped not only by physiological factors but also by social isolation, neighbourhood conditions, and supportive community networks. This article develops an integrated theoretical framework connecting Relational Social Work (RSW), eco-social work, and Caring Communities to address climate-related challenges facing older adults at the neighbourhood level.
The analysis demonstrates how RSW’s core concepts — coping networks, reciprocity, and relational goods — provide resources for understanding both climate vulnerability and community resilience. It examines the convergence between age-friendly and climate-resilient neighbourhood characteristics, and explores how participatory methods can build community capacity while engaging older residents as co-designers of adaptation strategies. The article positions older adults not primarily as vulnerable populations requiring protection, but as community members possessing knowledge and relationships that can be mobilised for collective resilience. Implications for eco-social policy, interdisciplinary collaboration, and future research are discussed.
Keywords
Relational Social Work, Eco-social work, Climate adaptation, Older adults, Participatory research.
