We are happy to present you with this OWN-Newsletter, just in time for the conference. During the summer we collected articles from various European countries. Gradually, we came to feel about the Newsletter as if it was our own child that needed to be fed and cherished. Now we can send the child, with all its imperfections, into the world of grown-ups to lead its own life. Meanwhile the mothers are left behind, exhausted but relieved. Editing this issue and preparing it for printing was no mean job for amateurs in the field of desktop publishing. Tears were shed over lost files or garbled email documents. Some English translations were barely comprehensible. Lack of time and money prevented us from having them properly corrected. We adapted them as best we could though, so as to make them a little more transparent. We are most grateful for the constant help and advice from sympathetic partners, friends and relations.

We regard our experience as editors of this OWN News as a typical example of best (and worst) practice. It shows that language and technical skills are factors that should not be ignored when discussing social exclusion. When collecting articles, we first of all turned to the many friends in Europe who continued to support OWN Europe, even when through lack of funds it had to lie dormant.

Many of the articles in this issue will make it clear that in most European countries, whatever the differences in prosperity, the well-being of older women has up to now had low priority on the political agenda. On the other hand, some governments, national and local, have already taken steps to increase awareness among older women of their position and to make them better equipped for the information society. Networks of non-governmental organisations play and will continue to play a crucial role in establishing links between older women and the evermore demanding society of the 21st century.