On Thursday, September 29, 2022, our Center for research of digital transformation CREDO marked the launch of the new project BOOMER - Booming digital literacy of elderly population with the kick-off meeting of the project consortium in Brussels. Under the leadership of the CREDO, eight partners from five countries (Croatia, Italy, Germany, Belgium and Spain) will develop solutions for improving digital literacy and encouraging the inclusion of third-age people in the digital age over 24 months. It is the only Erasmus+ project financed by the Croatian Agency for Mobility and Programs of the European Union as part of Key Activity 220 - Cooperation partnerships in adult education.

 

In recent years, the social inclusion of the elderly has become one of the priorities of European Union policy makers. Negative demographic trends, along with the increasing penetration of digital technologies into almost every aspect of human life, have highlighted the elderly population as one of the most vulnerable social groups, which has been further enhanced by the recent pandemic. In isolation, the sad reality of the generational digital divide became starkly exposed. This is even worrying because today the use of digital technologies is necessary even for everyday activities such as online shopping, banking and accessing information. Low levels of digital literacy make older people more vulnerable than the rest of the population to cyber threats ranging from fake news to financial fraud. In this context, digital literacy can no longer be considered an advantage, but a necessity for the aging population.

BOOMER is focused on the education of elderly people with a low level of digital competence, for which it will produce selected educational materials in order to reduce the risk of digital isolation and ensure the inclusiveness of this social group. All outcomes of BOOMER will be available in the form of an open educational platform.

In addition to our CREDO center, Croatian members of consortium include the Faculty of Economics and Business Zagreb, Matica Umirovljenika Hrvatske and Croatian Telekom. In addition to coordinating the entire project, CREDO will be responsible for the development of educational content for the target group. The project will be managed by prof. Nebojša Stojčić, and the UNIDU project team consists of assoc. prof. Katija Vojvodić, assoc. prof. Perica Vojinić, assoc. prof. Marija Bečić and Ana Pušić, MA. researchers of the CREDO center.

For more information on BOOMER visit:

credo@unidu.hr

https://credo.unidu.hr/index.php/en/

https://www.digital-boomer.eu/

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