Grant Writing: Retirees and the Environment

               
         This guide was created for a 2013 course and has not been updated since.

Greening the Gray

    

IC Library Print & Media Resources

Selected Subject Searches: Human Resources

Older volunteers--United States
National Senior Volunteer Corps (U.S.)  [nothing in the IC collection, but try it elsewhere]
Voluntary workers in community development--Congresses
Voluntarism
Voluntarism--United States

Aging--Psychological aspects
Aging--Social aspects
Aging--Social aspects--United States
Aging--United States

Baby boom generation--Retirement--United States
Baby boom generation--Retirement--United States--Congresses

Population forecasting
Population forecasting--United States
Population aging
Population aging--United States

Cognition in old age
Learning, Psychology of, in old age
Creative ability in old age
Motivation (Psychology) in old age

Older people--Employment
Older people--Employment--United States

Longevity

Ageism
Ageism--United States

Intergenerational relations
Intergenerational relations--United States

Selected Subject Searches: Natural Resources

Below is a sampling of potentially relevant Subject Headings.  For a much fuller list and related resources see my Environmental Research guide.

Environmentalism
Environmentalism--United States

Environmental protection
Environmental protection--Citizen participation
Environmental protection--Moral and ethical aspects
Environmental protection--United States

Environmental ethics
Environmental justice
Environmental justice--United States
Environmental policy
Environmental policy--United States

Conservation of natural resources
Conservation of natural resources--United States

Green Revolution
Green movement
Green technology
Green products

Energy consumption--United States
Energy conservation--United States
Energy development
Renewable energy sources
Sustainable development  [sustainability]
Sustainable development--Government policy
Sustainable development--United States

Human beings--Effect of climate on
Environmental degradation
Pollution--Environmental aspects
Pollution--United States

Global warming
Global warming--Prevention
Climatic changes
Ozone layer depletion
Greenhouse effect, Atmospheric
Greenhouse gases--Environmental aspects  

Nature conservation--Philosophy  
Nature conservation--United States

IC Library Databases: Articles

Selected Databases

     The Challenge: Most databases have a standard Subject Heading for seniors--usually Older People or Older Adults or Elderly.  But when you combine this with any form of environment-al-ism, you retrieve mainly articles about the domestic or institutional environment of old people.  Articles about older people as environmental activists are comparatively few, so be prepared to spend some time locating them among these other retrievals.
     And also note that there are articles about the effects of environmental degradation--for instance, pollution or global warming--on older people as a vulnerable population.  Althnough not about elder activism, these might provide arguements for why older people should be recruited to environmental causes--since it seems especially in their own interest.      
     Some of the most promising-sounding articles come from a journal called Generations, which is available full text from 1990--present in Academic Search Premier and from 1997--present in ProQuest Research.
     Pairing Subject headings for the elderly with those for Volunteers or Voluntarism will retrieve many articles about older activism.  Most will not be about environmental activism, but may provide models for how to involve or mobilize the older population.

     Academic Search Premier  Comprehensive subject coverage with considerable full text.  Note that there is a “Subject Terms” link just above the search boxes, allowing you to search the index of Subject Headings--often a good first stop for more efficient Subject searching whereby you are guaranteed that your topic is indeed a main subject of the articles retrieved.
     A good initial strategy in this database is to search a likely topic in the Subject Terms and when you find it “explode” the term by double clicking it--this brings up a list of related Subject terms.  You can check as many terms as you like before "adding" them to your search by AND-ing or OR-ing them together.
     User Advisory: For any retrieved set of articles, there will be a box displayed on the left that will limit the articles to “Scholarly” journals—just check the box and click the “Update Results” button below.

     General OneFile : is the most user-friendly of our comprehensive databases, covering almost any topic from a wide range of disciplinary angles and offering lots of full text.  Use the default Subject search to find the best subject heading for your topic (and when you find a good one be sure to look at the "Related Subjects" to see if there's something even better).
     When you settle on a subject heading, open the "Subdivisions" link below it.  Most General OneFile subject searches produce very large retrievals and the "subdivisions" help you narrow your search to a particular aspect: "Economic aspects," "Ethical aspects," "Forecasts and Trends," "History," "Media Coverage," "Political aspects," "Psychological aspects,"  "Social aspects," and "Statistics," to name only a few.
      If the best available subdivision is still too broad, open it and add your own Keywords in the "Search within these results" slot at the upper left.
     User Advisory: When first viewing your retrievals in General OneFile, note that you are seeing only the "Magazines" (popular articles) and must click on the tabs for "Academic Journals" (scholarly articles) or "News" (newspaper articles) to see those results.

     ProQuest Research Library : is another comprehensive database with substantial full text.  Use the "Thesaurus" (above the search slots) to preview what Subject Headings are available.  Subect searching can be a more efficient way to search than with only Keywords, since it guarantees that the articles retrieved actually be about the Subject--not just use a particular word. 
     Note that to the right of your search results you can limit your retrieval by "Source Type" (including Magazines, Newspapers, Scholarly Journals),  "Document Type," (including Cover Story, Editorial, or Interview), "Document Feature" (including Photographs, Illustrations), and "Location."
     Above each set of articles you retrieve ProQuest will display related Subject searches to help either broaden or narrow your focus.
     User Advisory: ProQuest is fussy about entering Subject searches in the designated search slot. If your subject is a person, enter the name--last name first--in the "Person" slot; if a named group of any kind--Microsoft, the Catholic Church, Radiohead, the New York Mets--enter it in "Co/Org"; if a place enter it in "Location."

The IC Library subscribes to a database called AgeLine ,but most of its resources are also available through the larger Academic Search Premier database above.

Contact Us

picture of Dr. Brian Saunders

Dr. Brian Saunders

Humanities Librarian
(607) 274-1198

Web Resources

Selected Web Sites

  • ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH FOR ALL GENERATIONS: A detailed "fact sheet" from the Generations United organization.
  • Generations United for Environmental Awareness and Action: 2004 report co-sponsored by Generations United and Penn State.
  • Capturing Experience: How People 50+ Can Help Your Organization: This is an online class from the Intergenerational Center at Temple University.  The introductory screens and module 1 are available here without registration; just keep clicking "next."
  • EPA Aging Initiative: Resources: Some interesting links here, some related to environmental hazzards to the elderly but others with a more activisit slant.
  • Senior Corps: Bill Clinton created the Corporation for National and Community Service in 1994, which included the Senior Corps.  The program was renewed and expanded by Obama in 2009 in the Serve America Act. There's not much on the environment here, but it does provide an example of mobilizing seniors for community action.  And note that in the "Get Involved" box on the right you can choose "Envrionment" as an interest and check opportunities state by state.
  • Environmental Alliance for Senior Involvement: They claim to be the "largest senior environmental action network." This site hasn't been updated in a while and some of the "publications" are missing, but it may still generate ideas.
  • Go Ecco: Senior Volunteering:The Go Ecco mission is to "Encourage ecological and volunteer tourism that promotes sustainable development."  As you can see here, they offer a wide variety of opportunities for seniors.
  • Senior Environmental Employment Program: Spnsored by the EPA, there isn't a lot of meat on the bone here, but it will give you a pretty full list of senior organizations that work with the EPA in providing support for various environmental initiatives.
  • Gray is Green and Green Seniors are two fairly informal sites with lots of anecdotal content about senior environmental activism.  

Citation Help

MLA

  1. MLA citation for books: in print, from databases, on the Web
  2. MLA citation for articles: in print, from databases, on the Web.
  3. MLA citation for Web and Multimedia resources, including Web sites, movies, DVDs, CDs, and videos.
  4. MLA in-text (parenthetical) citation (far less satanic than the first three).