International gerontologist to visit Christchurch

International gerontologist Patricia Moore, who is best remembered for her remarkable journey through the United States and Canada disguised as an 80-year-old woman, will visit Christchurch next month.

With her body altered to simulate the normal sensory changes associated with ageing, allowing her to respond to people, products and environments as an older person, Moore spent three years travelling through the two countries and wrote the bestseller, DISGUISED: A True Story, the Business of Ageing.

The gerontologist and designer is a leading authority on consumer lifespan behaviours and requirements, her visit to Christchurch being timely with the Christchurch City Council in the process of reviewing its Older Persons Policy.

Moore will be in Christchurch on Friday, 6 October to present a forum at the City Council on Universal Design: Environments, Products and Services for the Lifespan.

She is visiting Christchurch as the Southern Cross/NZiRA Visiting Fellow. For a month, Moore will travel throughout New Zealand presenting a series of forums on the design implications of population ageing and “inclusive design”.

Moore has been named by ID Magazine as one of the 40 Most Socially Conscious Designers in the world and she was selected in 2000 as one of the 100 Most Important Women in the United States.

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