THE GLOBAL ELDER NETWORK: STRATEGIC INTENT

The Moment Has Arrived

In today’s complex and rapidly evolving world, society urgently needs the wisdom of those who have navigated its challenges with insight, integrity, and purpose. Yet Elders—those who embody discernment, higher purpose, and the capacity to act for the greater good—remain isolated, their voices scattered, their collective power unrealized.

Until now.

The Global Elder Network is a groundbreaking initiative designed to change this reality. We are creating a secure, scalable platform that connects Elders worldwide, enabling them to bring their wisdom into the culture at precisely the moment when equanimity and thoughtful decisions about the future matter most.

Why Now? The Convergence of Need and Possibility

The demographic reality is undeniable. In the U.S., 58 million people are over 65—representing 17.8% of the population. By the end of this decade, they will constitute 21%, putting them in what we call the “Major Majority.” This shift carries tremendous cultural, financial, and political implications. The over-65 population is the fastest-growing demographic both locally and globally. People are getting older, living longer, and living in better health.

The technological capacity now exists. Given the current state of technology, including AI, it is now possible to establish a global Elder Network within two years—a network that will position Elders as a recognized entity in our cultural hierarchy.

The cultural imperative demands it. This is not a network of “older adults.” This is a network of Elders: individuals who have moved beyond the limitations of age and embraced the responsibilities of intentional, reflective, and engaged living. These are people who embody wisdom, higher purpose, and social impact. Separated, they have been overlooked. Connected, their voices will be heard.

What We’re Building

The Global Elder Network provides an interactive platform that mobilizes lived experience through multiple mediums: writing, podcasts, videos, facilitation, mentorship, collaborative projects, and knowledge-sharing. This infrastructure enables Elders to address urgent social, environmental, and cultural challenges with the ethical authority that only lived wisdom provides.

This network harnesses the collective experience of Elders across continents, creating opportunities for knowledge-sharing, mentorship, and collaborative projects that can shape a more resilient, thoughtful, and just world. It establishes a unique infrastructure for ethical leadership, innovation, and collective problem-solving.

Understanding Strategic Intent vs. Strategic Planning

Before outlining our path forward, it’s important to distinguish between strategic intent and strategic planning. Strategic intent—a concept introduced by Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad in their seminal 1989 HBR article—is a clear, compelling, long-term goal that unifies and motivates an organization. It articulates what we aim to achieve and why, providing a sense of purpose and direction.

Strategic planning translates this intent into actionable plans: the systematic process of defining strategy, allocating resources, and establishing mechanisms for monitoring progress.

What follows is our strategic intent—the vision that will guide our strategic planning.

Our Strategic Intent: Five Principles

The Global Elder Network operates from these foundational principles:

We unite Elders into a cultural force that cannot be ignored. No longer scattered, no longer dismissed, Elders become a recognized presence in our cultural hierarchy.

We don’t wait for change; we create it. The Global Elder Network is not reactive. It is a proactive force for transformation.

Connected Elders don’t adapt to the world—they transform it. This is the fundamental shift: from accommodation to agency, from marginalization to mobilization.

Where wisdom, purpose, and action converge, the world shifts. This convergence is the source of our power and our impact.

Elders acting together turn insight into impact and wisdom into reality. Collective action amplifies individual wisdom exponentially.

** If you’re interested in seeing the first draft of the Strategic Plan for the Global Elder Network, or if you’re interested in serving on the Board of Elders for this project, please reach out.

The Path Forward

Funding this initiative will empower a global movement that leverages lived experience for transformative impact. By investing in the Global Elder Network, grantmakers will enable unprecedented infrastructure for ethical leadership, innovation, and collective problem-solving.

Our immediate next step is to establish our Board of Elders, which will convert this strategic intent into a comprehensive strategic plan. This Board will bring the needed talent, knowledge assets, and relationships—for technology, structure, program design, and funding—as well as the required core values and timeless wisdom.

Coming Attraction: Building on Momentum

The first “Elderly or Elder” webinar demonstrated overwhelming interest, with 325 registrants. Following that success, we conducted interviews and surveys to inform the design of “Elderly or Elder II: A Panel Webinar.” When asked about the most pressing issues they wanted Elders to address, respondents identified clear priorities. The top three became topics for the panel webinar, validating both the need for this network and the appetite for Elder voices in cultural conversations.

Listen to Panelist Ron Pevny discuss Righteous Anger VS Hatred:

For more info on Ron visit his website:

https://www.centerforconsciouseldering.com/