{{Short description|American entrepreneur, gerontologist, psychologist, and lecturer}} {{Infobox person | name = Ken Dychtwald | birth_date = {{Birth year and age|1950}} | occupation = Gerontologist Psychologist Lecturer | image = Ken Dytchwald.jpg | alma_mater = [[Lehigh University]] | known_for = Co-founder and [[CEO]] of Age Wave | spouse = [[Maddy Dychtwald]] | children = 2 | website = {{URL|https://agewave.com/}} }}
'''Kenneth M. Dychtwald''' (born 1950) is an American entrepreneur, [[gerontologist]], [[psychologist]], and lecturer. He is a co-founder and chief executive officer of Age Wave, a California [[San Francisco Bay Area|Bay Area]]-based [[population ageing]] business management company.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Adams |first=Susan |title=The Prophet of the Coming Aging Boom |url=https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2011/1107/focus-prophet-coming-aging-boom-ken-dychtwald-age-wave-adams.html |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hannon |first=Kerry |date=2020-10-15 |title=Rethinking Retirement |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/15/business/rethinking-retirement.html |access-date=2022-04-04 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Stone |first=Amey |title=More Americans Could Outlive Their Savings. How Advisors Can Protect Them. |url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/outlive-savings-longevity-risk-ric-edelman-ken-dychtwald-51626888786 |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=www.barrons.com |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Early life and education == Dychtwald grew up in [[Newark, New Jersey]], and graduated from [[Weequahic High School]] in 1967.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Distinguished-Weequahic-Alumni |url=http://weequahicalumni.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Distinguished-Weequahic-Alumni-Revised-01-12-18.pdf}}</ref>
Dychtwald studied at [[Lehigh University]] and received his Ph.D. in psychology from Union Graduate School.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brennan |first=Patricia |date=2000-03-12 |title=What's Ahead for the Boomers? |language=en-US |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/2000/03/12/whats-ahead-for-the-boomers/d2786e4e-2652-4ec1-8cd1-5b15f8a1c5b8/ |access-date=2022-04-04 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Pitchman for the Gray Revolution - July 11, 2005 |url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2005/07/11/8265244/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070622081031/http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2005/07/11/8265244/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 22, 2007 |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=money.cnn.com}}</ref> He turned his doctoral thesis into a book, ''Bodymind''.
== Career == Dychtwald spent much of his career developing and honing the concept of the "Age Wave", a population and cultural shift caused by the converging global demographic forces of the [[Mid-20th century baby boom]], increasing [[life expectancy]], and the declining fertility rates of the later 20th and early 21st centuries.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Age Wave |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-age-wave/ |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=www.cbsnews.com |date=8 August 2003 |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 1973, Dychtwald co-founded the SAGE Project, an organization funded by the [[National Institutes of Health]] with the mission of improving health, wellness, and quality of life for older adults.<ref>{{cite journal |title=The Sage Project ... a New Image of Age |journal=Journal of Humanistic Psychology |date=April 1978 |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=69–74 |doi=10.1177/002216787801800216 |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/002216787801800216 |access-date=18 January 2023|url-access=subscription }}</ref> In 1982, he joined a panel created by the [[Office of Technology Assessment]], a [[think tank]] for the US Congress, to examine how population aging would impact America in the 21st century.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Aldrich |first1=Philippa |title=Lost footage from the original SAGE project from 1970s |url=http://www.thefutureperfectcompany.com/lost-footage-from-the-original-sage-project-from-1970s/ |website=The Future Perfect Company |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref>
In 1986, Dychtwald and his wife, Maddy, founded Age Wave, a think tank and consultancy with a perspective on the social, business, healthcare, and financial implications and opportunities of global aging and rising longevity.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2016-10-19 |title=Esalen honors couple for their work promoting purpose for aging populations |url=https://www.montereyherald.com/lifestyle/20161019/esalen-honors-couple-for-their-work-promoting-purpose-for-aging-populations |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=Monterey Herald |language=en-US}}</ref> Under Ken Dychtwald, Age Wave has conducted research studies with several ''[[Fortune 500]]'' companies, including [[Edward Jones Investments|Edward Jones]] and [[Merrill (company)|Bank of America Merrill Lynch]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Osterland |first1=Andrew |title=Economic worries further older Americans' pandemic-era plans to delay retirement, survey finds |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/09/economic-fears-further-retirees-pandemic-era-plans-to-keep-working.html |website=CNBC |access-date=16 November 2023 |language=en |date=9 July 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Ansberry |first1=Clare |title=An Overlooked Skill in Aging: How to Have Fun |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/an-overlooked-skill-in-aging-how-to-have-fun-1527937260 |website=Wall Street Journal |access-date=16 November 2023 |date=2 June 2018}}</ref>
Dychtwald served as a fellow and presenter at the [[World Economic Forum]] and was a delegate and featured presenter at both the 1995 and 2005 [[White House Conference on Aging|White House Conferences on Aging]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=2005 WHCOA Final Report |url=https://nicoa.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/2005-WHCOA-Final-Report.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rusoff |first=Jane Wollman |title=Why Advisors Need to Be 'Like a Quarterback': Ken Dychtwald |url=https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2021/12/29/advisors-need-to-be-like-a-quarterback-ken-dychtwald/ |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=ThinkAdvisor |language=en}}</ref>
He co-authored, along with [[Sandra Day O'Connor]] and [[Stanley B. Prusiner|Stanley Prusiner]], an [[op-ed]], ''The Age of Alzheimer's'', published by ''[[The New York Times]]'' in 2010.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=O'CONNOR |first1=SANDRA DAY |last2=PRUSINER |first2=STANLEY |last3=DYCHTWALD |first3=KEN |date=2010-10-28 |title=Opinion {{!}} The Age of Alzheimer's |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/28/opinion/28oconnor.html |access-date=2022-04-04 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
Dychtwald was asked by [[Jon Monday]] to be filmed interviewing world religion scholar [[Huston Smith]], on Smith's perspective of aging in the various cultures of the world and his personal perspective of growing old. As Smith was an early teacher of comparative religious studies in the 1950s and 1960s, now approaching his ninth decade, he could also help provide a perspective on aging. The interview was released in 2012 on DVD as ''[[The Arc of Life]]''.<ref>Review of Interview of Huston Smith in ''Grand magazine''[https://www.grandmagazine.com/2017/01/houston-smith-life-death-and-beyond/]</ref>
In 2022, Dychtwald hosted ''The Legacy Interviews'', a webcast with notable figures in the field of aging and longevity. This was turned into a 12-part podcast, a book, and a 60-minute documentary called ''Sages of Aging'' that aired nationally on public television.<ref>{{cite web |title=The American Society on Aging's Legacy Interviews Recordings |url=https://www.johnahartford.org/dissemination-center/view/the-american-society-on-agings-legacy-interviews |website=The John A. Hartford Foundation |access-date=18 January 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
Dychtwald often publishes on the topics of aging and retirement, particularly in [[The New York Times Sunday Magazine]], [[Yahoo!]], [[Forbes Magazine]], and [[The Huffington Post]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Yahoo Signs On Business Writers |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/27/technology/yahoo-signs-on-business-writers.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=18 January 2023 |date=27 September 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Dychtwald |first1=Ken |title=Enough with the Doom and Gloom |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/enough-with-the-doom-and_b_174263 |website=The Huffington Post |date=12 April 2009 |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref>
== Recognition ==
In 2004, Dychtwald, Tamara Erickson, and Bob Morison wrote the article ''It's Time to Retire Retirement'', which tied for the first place [[McKinsey Award]] as the best article of the year in the [[Harvard Business Review]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=The 46th Annual McKinsey Awards: Recognizing Excellence in Management Thinking |url=https://hbr.org/2005/04/the-46th-annual-mckinsey-awards-recognizing-excellence-in-management-thinking |journal=[[Harvard Business Review]] |access-date=18 January 2023 |date=1 April 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Dychtwald |first1=Ken |last2=Erickson |first2=Tamara J. |last3=Morison |first3=Bob |title=It's Time to Retire Retirement |url=https://hbr.org/2004/03/its-time-to-retire-retirement |journal=[[Harvard Business Review]] |access-date=18 January 2023 |date=1 March 2004}}</ref> In 2012, he co-envisioned the idea of an Alzheimer's XPRIZE with XPRIZE Founder Dr. [[Peter Diamandis]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Stewart |first1=Janet |title=Alzheimer's Research Team Wins $25 Million to Help It Compete for 2018 XPRIZE |url=https://alzheimersnewstoday.com/2017/10/24/alzheimers-research-team-wins-25-million-dollars-to-help-it-compete-for-2018-xprize/ |website=Alzheimer's News Today |date=24 October 2017 |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> He is a member of the Board of Trustees at the [[XPRIZE Foundation]] and is the former Chair of the Alzheimer's XPRIZE.<ref>{{cite web |title=XPRIZE Foundation Bio - Ken Dychtwald PhD |url=https://www.xprize.org/about/people/ken-dychtwald-phd?profileType=board_of_trustees |website=XPRIZE |access-date=18 January 2023 |language=en |archive-date=3 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230203035051/https://www.xprize.org/about/people/ken-dychtwald-phd?profileType=board_of_trustees |url-status=dead }}</ref>
In 2016, Dychtwald and his wife, [[Maddy Dychtwald]], received the Esalen Prize for "Advancing Human Potential of Aging Population".<ref>{{cite web |title=Ken and Maddy Dychtwald Receive the 2016 Esalen Prize for Advancing Human Potential of Aging Population {{!}} Press Releases & Media Resources {{!}} Esalen |url=https://www.esalen.org/press-release/ken-and-maddy-dychtwald-receive-the-2016-esalen-prize-for-advancing-human-potential-of-aging-population |website=Esalen |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> Dychtwald also received the Inspire Award from the International Council on Active Aging in 2018, recognizing individuals for their contributions to the active-aging industry.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ken Dychtwald: How The Age Wave Pathfinder Inspired A New View Of Aging - International Council on Active Aging® |url=https://www.icaa.cc/blog/2018-11/Ken-Dychtwald-How-the-Age-Wave-pathfinder-inspired-a-new-view-of-aging.htm |website=www.icaa.cc |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> In 2023, he received the American Society on Aging’s President’s Award for evolving the world’s understanding of what aging means (Dychtwald was also honored by ASA in 1996 and 2013).<ref>{{cite web |title=ASA Hosts the Conference in Aging in Atlanta |url=https://generations.asaging.org/asa-hosts-conference-aging-atlanta |website=generations.asaging.org |access-date=16 November 2023 |language=en |date=4 April 2023}}</ref>
== Film and television == * ''Age Power! With Ken Dychtwald: How the 21st Century Will be Ruled by the New Old'', [[PBS]], 2000.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Singer |first1=Natasha |title=In a Graying Population, Business Opportunity |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/business/06aging.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=18 January 2023 |date=5 February 2011}}</ref> * ''The Boomer Century: 1946-2046'', PBS, 2007.<ref>{{cite web |title=Boomer Century |url=https://www.pbs.org/boomercentury/ |website=PBS |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> * ''With Purpose: Going from Success to Significance In Work and Life'', PBS, 2009.<ref>{{cite web |title=With Purpose: Going from Success to Significance In Work and Life with Ken Dychtwald |url=https://www.ket.org/program/with-purpose-going-from-success-to-significance-in-work-and-life-with-ken-dychtwald/) |website=KET |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> * ''The Arc of Life: Huston Smith on Life, Death & Beyond'', mondayMEDIA, 2012.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Arc of Life: Huston Smith on Life, Death and Beyond |url=https://www.vedanta.com/store/Arc_of_Life_Huston_Smith.htm |website=Vedanta Press and Catalog |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> * ''High Point University Presents: Ken Dychtwald & Nido Qubein'', PBS, 2014.<ref>{{cite web |title=High Point University Presents |url=https://www.pbs.org/video/high-point-university-presents-high-point-university-presents-ken-dychtwald-and-nido-qubei/ |website=PBS |access-date=18 January 2023 |language=en}}</ref> * ''Life's Third Age, Public Television'', 2020-2021.<ref>{{cite web |title=About Twin Cities PBS |url=https://www.tpt.org/lifes-third-age-with-ken-dychtwald/about) |website=Twin Cities PBS |access-date=18 January 2023 |language=en |date=7 December 2015}}</ref> * ''Sages of Aging'', PBS, 2022.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sages of Aging |url=https://www.pbs.org/show/sages-aging/ |website=PBS |access-date=18 January 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
== Books == * ''Bodymind'', Tarcher/Putman, 1986 * ''Wellness and Health Promotion for the Elderly'', [[Aspen Publishers|Aspen Pub]], 1986 * ''Age Wave: How the Most Important Trend of Our Time Will Change Your Future'', with co-author Joe Flower, [[Bantam Books]], 1990 * ''Healthy Aging: Challenges and Solutions'', Aspen, 1999 * ''Age Power: How the 21st Century Will Be Ruled by the New Old'', Tarcher/Putnam, 2000 * ''Leaving a Legacy: The Essential Resource for Financial Professionals'', with co-authors Mark Zesbaugh and Catherine Fredman, Age Wave Press, 2006 * ''The Power Years: A User's Guide to the Rest of Your Life'', with co-author Daniel J. Kadlec, [[Wiley (publisher)|Wiley]], 2005 * ''Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills and Talent'', with co-authors Tamara J. Erickson and Robert Morison, [[Harvard Business Review Press]], 2006 * ''Gideon's Dream: A Tale of New Beginnings'', co-authored with [[Maddy Dychtwald]], Grace Zaboski, and Dave Zaboski (illustrator), [[HarperCollins]], 2008 * ''With Purpose: Going From Success to Significance in Work and Life'', with co-author Daniel J. Kadlec, [[William Morrow (publishing house)|William Morrow]], 2009 * ''A New Purpose: Redefining Money, Family, Work, Retirement, and Success'', with co-author Daniel J. Kadlec, [[Harper Paperbacks]], 2010 * ''What Retirees Want: A Holistic View of Life's Third Age'', with co-author Robert Morison, Wiley, 2020 * ''Radical Curiosity: One Man's Search for Cosmic Magic and a Purposeful Life'', [[Unnamed Press]], 2021 * ''Sages of Aging: A Guide for Changemakers'', [[Nova Science Publishers]], 2022 * ''Radical Curiosity: My Life on the Age Wave'', [[Unnamed Press]], 2023
== Personal life == Dychtwald is married to [[Maddy Dychtwald]].<ref name=":2" /> They live in [[Orinda, California]], and have two children, Zak and Casey.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Team |first=Esalen |title=Esalen Journal {{!}} Life, Aging, and Longevity in the Time of COVID |url=https://www.esalen.org/post/life-aging-and-longevity-in-the-time-of-covid-19 |access-date=2022-04-04 |website=www.esalen.org}}</ref>
== References ==
{{reflist}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dychtwald, Ken}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Lehigh University alumni]] [[Category:American gerontologists]] [[Category:21st-century American psychologists]] [[Category:People from Newark, New Jersey]] [[Category:1950 births]]