The world stands on the threshold of a stunning demographic transformation. It is called global aging, and it promises to transform virtually every dimension of public and private life, from the shape of the family to the shape of the geopolitical order.

  • By 2030, the number of Americans aged 65 and over will nearly double.
  • By 2040, more than one in three adults in Germany, Italy, and Japan will be retirees.
  • By 2050, there will be nearly 100 million Chinese over age 80—and more South Koreans may be turning 90 each year than being born.

The Global Aging Institute (GAI) is a nonprofit research and educational organization dedicated to improving our understanding of global aging, to informing policymakers and the public about the challenges it poses, and to encouraging timely and constructive policy responses. Our research agenda is broad, encompassing everything from retirement security to national security. And our perspective is global, encompassing aging societies worldwide.

Although the Global Aging Institute is new, its mission is not. Before founding the institute in the spring of 2014, GAI President Richard Jackson directed a research program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies that over a period of nearly fifteen years produced a large body of cutting-edge research and analysis on global aging and played a leading role in shaping the debate over what promises to be one of the defining challenges of the twenty-first century. The new Global Aging Institute will continue, expand, and build on this legacy.