About IARA – the research centre on ageing in Carinthia, Austria

The Institute for Applied Research on Ageing (IARA) is the first research centre to be founded at the Carinthian University of Applied Sciences (CUAS). Thus CUAS has set a clear focus on interdisciplinary research on ageing. IARA has been in existence since 2016 with the aim of supporting the challenges and potentials of an ageing society through practice-oriented research.

Priorities of ageing research in the IARA departments

Macroeconomic Perspective

Labour market • Consumption • Macroeconomy • Migration

Department for Demographic Change and Regional Development (DCRD)
Active and Assisted Living (AAL) and Health Technology

AAL • eHealth & Health Solutions • Participative Research & Living Lab

Department for Health and Assistive Technologies (HAT)
Civil Society Perspective

Housing • Inclusion • Civil Society

Department for Intergenerational Solidarity, Activity and Civil Society (ISAC)

From the foundation at the Carinthia University of Applied Sciences (CUAS) until today

Funding period 1: 2016-2020

Graphic about IARA origins and funding period

The research centre IARA was established on the initiative of the Committee for Research & Development (R&D) and the University Management of Carinthia University of Applied Sciences (CUAS) in a competitive, university-wide tendering process. Since then, the task of the centre has been to bundle and network research on ageing at CUAS and to develop new, innovative projects based on these activities. In close cooperation between the three IARA departments, new findings about the living conditions of older people, technical support possibilities as well as economic and demographic conditions are collected, expanded, analysed, processed and disseminated so that this knowledge can be made available to politics, business and civil society. To this end, IARA promotes in particular application-oriented research and transdisciplinary approaches.

Funding period 2: from 2021, in preparation

The application for continuation of IARA for another 5 years (2021-2025) has already been submitted and is currently under external and internal review.