I have been wondering a lot lately which global issue FIRST would tackle next. With the rapid increase in our elderly population, the challenges faced by seniors as they struggle to make ends meet while living longer than previous generations are unprecedented.

From 2012 Jr. FLL Super Seniors Challenge,

Can Junior FIRST® LEGO® League teams improve the quality of life for seniors by learning about the obstacles some people face as they get older? In the 2012, SUPER SENIORS(SM) Challenge, teams will learn about simple machines as they build a model made of LEGO® elements with a motorized moving part and create a team Show-Me Poster to represent their findings. Over 16,000 children ages 6 to 9 from 5 countries will learn about the challenges some seniors may have getting around, keeping in touch with friends and family or staying active and fit.

Jr. FLL® has captured the imagination and minds of thousands of kids. Each year, the Challenge Advisory Team designs a new and exciting Challenge to ignite the inherent creativity in young kids. The end result of the design process is a Challenge with two defined parts – the Show-Me Poster and the Model.

And from FLL 2012 Senior Solutions Challenge,

Can FIRST® LEGO® League teams improve the quality of life for seniors by helping them continue to be independent, engaged, and connected in their communities? In the 2012 Senior SolutionsSM Challenge, over 200,000 children ages 9 to16* from more than 60 countries will explore the topic of aging and how it may effect a person’s ability to maintain his or her lifestyle – solving issues like getting around, keeping in touch, or staying fit. Teams will research obstacles and then suggest ways to improve the quality of life for the seniors affected. Teams will also build, test, and program an autonomous robot using LEGO MINDSTORMS® robot to solve a set of missions on an obstacle course. Throughout their experience, teams will operate under FLL’s signature set of Core Values.