Breaking isolation

Social connections are necessary for society. However, it is clear that many people are isolated nowadays. The public affected by this problem of isolation is not necessarily the one we think of at first. Because this difficulty does not only affect the elderly, as one might think. We note in particular since the pandemic a sharp increase in cases of loneliness in urban areas among parents of single-parent families, but also among young people.

The objective of our future network is to work on the question of the social bond between people. How can citizen participation promote social links among young and old, and how can citizens be involved to recreate ties and facilitate them?

This citizen involvement must promote social diversity and intergenerational links because it is also a citizen's duty to take care of one's neighbour. Make an act of citizenship by ensuring that those around you are not abandoned.

This problem linked to the Isolated Public is very present in Agen, which is why we want to develop the involvement at the City level of volunteers in the neighbourhoods in the service of Agen citizen assistance.

Working in collaboration with small and medium-sized cities, with similarities to the city of Agen, would make it possible to compare how other European cities are tackling this difficulty.

The cities in the network could define together which strategy to put in place. Experiments at the local level with territorial partners would make it possible to test innovative solutions based on existing systems but also by inventing new possibilities linked to new generations while using new technologies.

Because citizen participation can be a solution in the fight against isolation.