Is Your Environment Making You Lonely?

The places we reside, from the streets to senior living facilities, have an influence on our feeling of belonging, trust in others, health, and happiness. The good news is that it is possible to establish locations that bring us together.

Millions of people's health and well-being are being jeopardized by loneliness and social isolation, which has been aggravated by changes in building and infrastructure design. Unwittingly, many of us have shifted away from more communal and public ways of existence and toward more private and divided ways of existence.

While loneliness is often in the news, a bigger problem is social health, which is how well we feel in connection to others; for example, our confidence in our neighbors, our feeling of belonging, or the quality of our relationships. According to research, poor social health has a negative impact on physical health and well-being.

Improving social health will need a cultural transformation, as well as a design that prioritizes long-term human interaction. The Biden administration's projected $2 trillion infrastructure investment has the potential to promote long-term human connection with a short-term economic investment via design.

The following are some ideas for building situations that promote social health and counteract loneliness.

1. Enhance Shared Space

Humans are a territorial species. Our urge to define space and sense of ownership keeps us secure, but it may also keep us out. This is why shared spaces (public squares, dog parks, community halls) and in-between spaces (porches, patios, reception areas) are so important. Our identity may become more flexible in these environments, and our inherent ability to connect and feel connected may take root.

2. All Generations Have Access

Adults aged 65 and over will outnumber children for the first time in our country's history by 2030. The Livable Communities Project is assisting in the development of a road map for communities to achieve more egalitarian and aging-friendly environments.

Many of the ideas involved—easy walkability, safety, plenty of places to sit with cover from the weather, and uniform sidewalks with curb cuts—are not new to urban design theory, but their ability to encourage or hinder social interaction is just now becoming clear. Although studies demonstrate that chronic loneliness is most damaging in older persons, all demographic groups may feel high degrees of loneliness and need supporting situations.

3. Green Spaces Inherently Connect

There are pockets of abandoned places across the country, ranging from alleys to vacant lots. These areas are often anxiety-inducing for individuals who see them, as well as accessible locations for crime and garbage. Small, well-kept green areas in our areas, on the other hand, may have a huge influence, providing relief, an opportunity to engage with neighbors, and aiding in the reduction of isolation. As populations grow more urbanized, it is critical to provide locations that promote leisure and socializing.

4. Give them a reason to connect with you

Despite the innate need for human connection, the inertia of being alone may be difficult to overcome. Providing regular (grocery shopping, dining) and spectacular (holiday events, festivals) activities may draw individuals into the public sphere and encourage them to participate in public life.

New flats and condominiums are filling the urban centers in huge cities such as Austin, San Francisco, and Dallas. Despite abundant evidence that a mix of uses (housing, retail, and supermarket) creates social capital, a feeling of community, and accessibility, few of these housing alternatives include even the most basic qualities to support the local communities where they are being developed.

5. Participate in Community Activities

Members of the community drive places that seem particularly linked. Microgrants have aided in the funding of modest, citizen-led community initiatives. Working with others on a shared problem or project, such as a communal garden, is one of the quickest ways to bond a group of strangers, according to research.

The places we design, finance, and build now will affect our lives for years to come, and an investment in human connection will pay off for generations.

Conclusion

Lonely individuals may assist fill the connection hole by fostering intimacy with another living object – such as a pet – or by broadening their network of friends via more face-to-face contact.

Loneliness, which has inspired almost as many pop-music songs as love, is a topic that is increasingly being studied as a predictor or co-factor in physical and mental disease. Loneliness, according to Schermer, is not about individuals who seek solace in their own company, but about individuals who feel alone and disconnected from meaningful connections.