Cities are often described as engines of opportunity, density, and connection – yet they are also where loneliness concentrates and becomes most visible. This session explores the paradox of proximity: how urban systems, planning logics, and everyday design decisions can unintentionally produce loneliness, while those very same systems hold the potential to prevent it. Drawing on the book ‘The Paradox of Proximity – Preventing Urban Loneliness‘, Ann-Britt Andersen reframes loneliness as a spatial and societal challenge rather than an individual failure. Through examples from Canada, Japan, South Korea, and the Nordics, the session shows how cities can move from being part of the problem to becoming part of the cure – by designing social infrastructure, everyday encounters, and environments that actively invite belonging.
[Free to attend. Register here.]