KempenLIFE

KempenKempenLIFE is a new cooperative of older citizens in the rural area, south-west of Eindhoven. The area encompasses 5 municipalities, Eersel, Bladel, Bergeijk, Reusel-De Mierden and Oirschot, all together with 85.000 inhabitants. The area is a rural area: many small villages, many people living in detached houses in the country side. Characteristic is that ageing has extra effects in this area, because the children of many large farmer families are among or above retiring age. In the past, in this area also many cooperatives among farmers and other small companies have been established for more effective cooperation in hard country life. Nowadays, cooperatives between citizens are coming back: citizens want more control on health, well-being, long term care and energy provision. Several new cooperatives have already been formed in the past 2 years. KempenLIFE is a new cooperative, established by older citizens, to organise new services for comfort, welfare and care, making use of broadband (fibre to the home) and an ICT community platform. KempenLIFE will help rolling out these fibre to the home connections (planned for end 2013/first half of 2014), also to the remote houses/farms, and the community platform. KempenLIFE will furthermore define and implement new ICT services together with the municipalities and existing larger service providers. HEREiAM will perfectly fit in the ambitions of this cooperative: a bottom-up approach by citizens themselves to help each other in maintaining independent living in this area. Matching paid and voluntary work between demand and offer is one of the first needs to be filled.

Contact person: Elise Doeschot (summitinterior@gmail.com)