Today I recalled a UK-based charity called The Campaign to End Loneliness, which launched back in 2011. In 2017, the project released this 3-minute “Loneliness Project” video that asked, “Could you go a week without seeing anyone? This is a reality for over half a million older people in the UK.”
Check it out:
Then, in 2018, they launched this 2-minute video saying: “Remember when making friends was child’s play? Over half of adults in the UK say it’s been a long time since they made a new friend or connection. It doesn’t need to be this way. So let’s learn from the experts. Children are great at breaking down barriers that stop many of us from connecting.
The site offers some facts on loneliness, links and resources, a blog, and other ways to get involved in one’s local community (UK-focused). An affiliated site of the project is called “Be More Us.”
When I remembered having seen the first video a few years ago, I began to reflect on how everyone is getting a taste of the “Loneliness Project” now and I wonder if this might also give us the impetus for our own campaigns to end loneliness.
Will this experience startle younger active people to the realization that social distance is the norm for many seniors and persons with disabilities who face greater isolation?
And will our being disquieted and uncomfortable in this period rouse us to be mindful of those who are disquieted and uncomfortable in the seemingly ordinary periods for us?
Amanda Achtman 