Since 1974, the Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging at Hunter College has been working to improve the lives of older adults through research, professional development, and advancements in policy and practice. We work to ensure that aging is framed not as a disease, but as another stage in the life course. We know that the way we age is influenced by the way we live. A good old age is a life with purpose and meaning, social engagement, a positive attitude toward aging and life, sufficient financial resources, and physical and mental wellness. People enjoying a good old age are assets to their communities. Our challenge is to better understand how to foster the conditions for a good old age for people who experience hardship and inequality because of cumulative disadvantage over the life course. Our work crosses disciplines with a focus on community-based participatory research and the development and evaluation of new policy and practice solutions. We communicate what we learn to the people with the power to transform the lives of older adults: our colleagues in the field of aging and policymakers. We focus especially on our academic home, Hunter College, our diverse neighborhood of East Harlem, and our hometown of New York City. Our work focuses on: Work & Aging Financial Exploitation Cumulative Disadvantage Housing & Urban Environments HIV & Aging Sexuality & Gender Diversity Arts & Aging