How can we promote social participation among older adults? The idea is noble, but a tremendous amount of work is needed to turn this vision into reality. This is the conclusion reached in this feature article. Yet the stakes are high: scientific studies show that older adults who live in an environment conducive to social participation enjoy better physical and mental health. In other words, participating in social life is good for older adults’ health. However, the environment must be conducive to this; it is not the individual who decides to participate, but society that can create the favorable conditions. This is what is known as health promotion. Twenty experts contributed to this feature.