One of the nation’s foremost experts in aging and health, Dr. Carl Eisdorfer, director of the Center on Aging at the University of Miami and the Alzheimer's Disease Centers at the University of Miami and Mount Sinai Medical Center of Miami Beach, will discuss “Are We Becoming an Age-Irrelevant Society?” at noon Tuesday, May 9, at UNC Asheville’s Reuter Center. The event is free and open to the public.

According to Eisdorfer, recent research shows that older Americans are staying healthier and living longer, making the prospects of a brief period of illness before death an increasingly realistic possibility for the majority of people. If so, this changes the picture of aging and old age. Are we entering the era of a “positive aging” society, asks Eisdorfer. How does our nation plan for and invest in this demographic revolution?

Dr. Eisdorfer joined the University of Miami in 1986 as professor and chairman of psychiatry, professor of psychology, and professor of family and community medicine. The author of more than 20 books, Dr. Eisdorfer’s primary work focuses on aging, memory, dementia, health policy and caregiving for those in later life. He holds bachelor, master’s and doctorate degrees from New York University and an M.D. from Duke University. He has also completed the Program for Health Systems Management at Harvard University.

For more information, call the N.C. Center for Creative Retirement at 828/251-6140.