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Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing

TILDA is Ireland’s flagship interdisciplinary research project in smart ageing and life course development. Ageing is a key research theme for Trinity College Dublin, and TILDA is the most detailed study on ageing ever undertaken in Ireland and one of the most comprehensive longitudinal studies of its kind globally. It is recognised as an infrastructure of excellence in ageing research.

TILDA collects and analyses extensive data on health, lifestyle and financial status of people aged 50 and over resident in Ireland. It improves our understanding of the factors that aid successful ageing and assists in the development of economic, health and social policies benefiting all people living in Ireland.

TILDA’s overarching aim is to make Ireland the best place in the world to grow old, by engaging in research to determine:

  • the health status and health needs of older people
  • the social and economic status and needs of older people
  • the health, economic and social needs of families and carers of older people
  • the biological and environmental components of "successful ageing"
  • the contributions that older people are making to society and the economy
  • how each of these key components (health, wealth, happiness) interact further to ensuring that Ireland meets the needs and choices of its citizens in a personalised and positive environment and with due dignity and respect

TILDA brings together researchers from across Health Sciences, STEM and Arts & Humanities. It is led by Professor Rose Anne Kenny, Regius Professor of Physic (1637) and Chair of Medical Gerontology at Trinity College Dublin, and Director of Mercer’s Institute for Successful Ageing (MISA), a state-of-the-art clinical research institute for ageing at St. James’s Hospital Dublin.

Philanthropic support will enable TILDA to expand its research team by funding Research Fellows and PhDs to accelerate new research and communicate findings that will inform national programmes and policies that impact on the life course of people in Ireland.