Collaborative Aging Governance between China and the EU

Abstract

Population aging is a global challenge. China and Eastern Europe (e.g., Romania) face sharply rising elderly shares and distinctive demographic pressures. This paper examines cross-border digital eldercare governance by comparing China’s “Time Bank” service-exchange pilots with Romania’s community-based mutual assistance initiatives. The study draws on social capital theory and trust frameworks to analyze how institutional contexts shape volunteer‐led eldercare. Methods include document and literature analysis, surveys of Chinese and Romanian students (N≈600) on willingness to participate in eldercare volunteering, and a matching‐efficiency simulation (E = S/D) of service provision. The cases illustrate diverging models: China’s state-supported “Time Bank” channels civic volunteers through digital platforms, while Romania’s rural communities rely more on grassroots mutual aid against the backdrop of labor outmigration. The study finds potential synergies in light coordination but also tensions in data governance and differing institutional trust. The findings show that social networks build local reciprocity, but require clear legal and technical trust anchors. The implications are that joint frameworks could standardize digital care protocols and enable cross-cultural volunteer exchanges, leveraging each side’s strengths. This study contributes to theory by linking social capital under digital globalization and proposes practical China–EU pathways for cooperative aging governance.