A Letter from ASA's CEO About On Aging 2025 in Orlando, FL

Dear American Society on Aging community,

It’s incredible how the energy from On Aging 2024 has endured. It shows up during ASA staff and board meetings, and in emails and conversations I’ve had with many of you over the past two months. And it is carrying into our initial planning for the On Aging 2025 annual conference, which will be held in Orlando, Florida, April 21–24, 2025.

Despite the energy of possibility we’re feeling, we also recognize that the location of this conference creates concerns for some of our members. They have rightfully pointed out that Florida, in recent years, has enacted some of the country’s most severely regressive policies on issues such as LGBTQ+ rights, immigration, and DEI education and corporate strategies, to name a few. It also ranks 34 (out of 50 states) in AARP’s scorecard on long-term care and 36 in the Commonwealth Fund’s Scorecard on State Health System Performance.

While some ASA members believe hosting our conference in Florida inadvertently condones this type of political climate and creates potential danger for visitors, others have powerfully argued that hosting On Aging in this state sends a strong message against hate and in solidarity with Florida’s diverse advocates, who have for generations been fighting to create a better state in which to live, work, and age.

We have chosen to collaborate with Florida’s communities and advocates to convene an event that explores what it means to age and thrive, especially in the face of hostility. We believe it’s more important than ever to show up and speak out for equity in aging in every state, including Florida.

We’re excited to highlight Orlando as A City for Everyone, support the Seminole Tribe of Florida on whose lands we will be, and create a space where all of us can learn and speak and act in many venues—from sessions to site visits and more. As always, we will feature your work and innovations, and put a special focus on ending ageism in the state with the second highest percentage of people ages 65 and older. And we will show up to be with our Floridian members and partners, and to support sectors and leaders of the local economy.

Lean in with us! Share your work and your voice as part of the On Aging 2025 conference. Advocate, activate, learn, and recharge with leaders from across the country. And help us continue fueling the energy we’ll need in the years ahead to transform aging throughout the country.

Sincerely,

Leanne Clark-Shirley, PhD
President & CEO
American Society on Aging