Bringing People Together to Combat Loneliness

Loneliness is described as a craving for human connection, feeling left out, and having no one to turn to for support. The tragic story of Beth de Bruyne, who lived in isolation and remained unnoticed in her apartment for 10 years, inspired a national campaign in the Netherlands to address loneliness. The Omar's Soup project, started by two local individuals, Max and Martin, brings students and elderly people together through soup-making activities. By bridging the generation gap and creating opportunities for interaction, the project has shown great success in combating loneliness and has expanded to multiple cities.