In Copenhagen, Denmark, Ole Kassow demonstrates a core component of hygge with his non-profit organization, Cycling Without Age: Togetherness.

Ole Kassow brings 55 and better, Active Agers outdoors in the community, interacting with neighbors, coming together, and developing close bonds.

This avid cyclist takes residents from a retirement community for a ride on a trishaw – a cargo tricycle with a low passenger compartment located in front of the cyclist.

The residents connect with each other and neighbors nearby through stories and smiles during each ride. As the trishaw passes different community landmarks, residents reminisce about their past lives and earlier experiences living within the community. Upon returning from the trishaw rides, the residents are happy, talkative, and social.

The trishaw rides turns strangers into friends, and develops stronger familial ties. The increased togetherness goes beyond the cycle rides. Residents engage in pleasant, life-enriching activities, such as cooking together, playing games, and sharing tips about how to clean their homes.

What is Ole Kassow and his team’s goal?

To break down the barriers to mobility and activity that many senior citizens worldwide face each day.

The benefits of the trishaw rides extend beyond these mobility and activity challenges: 

Provide fundamental human kindness

Promote community

Build relationships across generations

Cycling Without Age fulfills people’s dreams and brings people outdoors and out of their comfort zones, no matter their age. 

To learn more about the non-profit Cycling Without Age and its trishaw, watch Ole Kassow’s noteworthy TED Talk:

How will you enrich the life of a senior citizen in your community?