Older people left out as UN speeches repeatedly invoke young

By MATT SEDENSKY
AP National Writer

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — As war, climate change and inequality have consumed much of the U.N. General Assembly, world leaders have largely left out mention of the planet’s aging population. Older peoples’ lives have become intertwined with the biggest issues of the day. But in U.N. speeches this past week, they garnered little attention. Leaders spoke of “new generations,” of “children” and of “youth” but the old rarely made the cut. That’s despite a global population of people 60 and older that has surged in recent decades, hovering around 1 billion globally. The U.N. projects it will more than double again in the next three decades.