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The authors wish to make the following correction to their paper (Del Barrio 2018) [...]

The concept of 'Active Aging' emerged in the 1990s, reflecting a growing emphasis on the relationships between health, participation, aging, and independence. The concept focuses on encouraging the participation of older adults in society and it recognizes the competence and knowledge that older people possess. The Active Aging discourse developed as a broad political response to demographic aging, one which promotes a cultural shift in what 'old age' may mean, by providing older people with new roles. The initiative "Age-Friendly Cities and Communities", which was launched by the WHO in 2007, was developed with the aim of applying this paradigm into practice at the local level. Its purpose was to promote a movement of citizen participation where older people have a leading role as generators of well-being, and tackling the barriers of Active Aging. This paper provides a theoretical reflection concerning the development of the concept of Active Aging and how this has led to new ways of active citizenship in later life. New generations of older people demand a space where they can develop and contribute to society, regardless of their age. The aging of the population poses challenges and opportunities, which we can and must take advantage of in order to build a better and more egalitarian society, one that recognizes the value of diversity.

Utilizing a mixed-methods research design consisting of two consecutive phases, this study investigates older adults' perceptions and understanding of social connectedness factors influencing late-life volunteering. In the first phase, quantitative data from the Belgian Ageing Studies project ( N = 24,508, from 89 municipalities) was analyzed through regression modeling. In the second, qualitative phase, focus groups with older people were conducted in each of the six research locations, to elucidate and build on the quantitative results. The research findings indicate that formal connectedness is highly influential for both the potential to volunteer and actually doing so. Membership of an association and being a new resident are key determinants for volunteering in later life. Moreover, local policy also functions as an important bridge between long-term residents and new residents in terms of the social structure of the society and the extent to which people are integrated into the community.

As the drive towards creating age-friendly cities grows, this important book provides a comprehensive survey of theories and policies aimed at improving the quality of life of older people living in urban areas. In this book, part of the Ageing in a Global Context series, leading international researchers critically assess the problems and the potential of designing age-friendly environments. The book considers the different ways in which cities are responding to population ageing, the different strategies for developing age-friendly communities, and the extent to which older people themselves can be involved in the co-production of age-friendly policies and practices. The book includes a manifesto for the age-friendly movement, focused around tackling social inequality and promoting community empowerment