Sociability: Public Spaces as an Antidote to Isolation | Placemaking Round-up

Posted August 17, 2023 - 07:01

This round-up from the Project for Public Spaces connects people who share a passion for public spaces to ideas and issues, news, quotes, places, and events from the placemaking movement.

Sociability: Public Spaces as an Antidote to Isolation

Kids enjoying a new playground designed by Project for Public Spaces in the courtyard of a shelter for homeless women and their children. Credit: Win

Earlier this year, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory on the public health risks of social isolation citing that the mortality impact is the equivalent of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Great public spaces, with their ability to foster sociability, can be an antidote to this loneliness epidemic.

Our new article, the second in a series exploring the four segments of the Place Diagram, explains the benefits of sociability and how to promote it in a way that is inclusive and representative of the local community. Read more.

Placemaking: Making it Happen

Join our next Placemaking: Making it Happen online training taking place September 5-21, 2023, to learn how to implement and manage placemaking projects. Register now through August 31—discounted group rates are available!

Including special guest sessions from:

Melissa Lee, Principal, Public Works Partners
Jim Walker, Executive Director, Big Car Collaborative

More Events & Opportunities

August 22, 11a-12p ET • Register for Climate Resilience for an Aging Nation, a free webinar from Cities for Everyone with Gil.

Save the Date: Project for Public Spaces is hosting the following online trainings focus on public markets. Registration for both opens on August 20:

How to Create Successful Markets | October 24 - November 9, 2023
Places of Economic Opportunity | November 14 & 16, 2023

Have an event or opportunity you would like to share? Email us at [email protected].

Public Space News

Infusing Homelessness Services with Sociability. While running the mobile showers organization LavaMaeX, Kris Kepler learned that throwing the equivalent of festival-like events allowed social service providers to build connections with people experiencing homelessness, while providing opportunities for socializing. While LavaMaeX has closed its doors, they’ve released a toolkit to help organizers plan their own events. Similarly, the Project for Public Spaces-designed “Recharge Station” in NYC’s Times Square—beautifully captured in a segment on NY 1—encourages interactions between New Yorkers, regardless of housing status or mental health needs, while also connecting them with social services. (Next City)

The Farmers Market as a Social Hub. Farmers markets and grocery stores both offer food, and yet, as many of us know from personal experience, farmers markets are inherently more social places. In an article in the Gettysburg Times, a market manager explores the various factors that contribute to a farmers market’s sociability including programming, having a variety of vendors to engage with, and the more relaxing nature of being outdoors. (Gettysburg Times)

A Skatepark in the UK Invites Input from Kids. A collaboration between the Youth Commission and Art for Guernsey developed funding for making a local skatepark in the British Isles more vibrant through new murals. The artists involved with the project held community engagement workshops with local youth to encourage them to weigh in on the transformation and feel ownership over their beloved space. The changes will be launched along with a skate jam to bring locals out to celebrate (BBC).

Placemaking Playbook

As always, here's a roundup of placemaking projects and ideas that inspired us this week:

An investigation of NYC’s privately owned public spaces brings attention to infractions (NY Times)
How to return dignity to walking infrastructure (Strong Towns)
The public health role of America’s disappearing public pools (CNN)
A new ebook explores Indigenous land stewardship in American cities (Next City)
Many students overlook urban planning as a career—here’s how to change that (The Conversation)

From the Blog

11th International Public Markets Conference: 4 Key Takeaways
July 21, 2023

Uses & Activities: How to Create Multi-Purpose Places
June 2, 2023 • by Katherine Peinhardt

How Toronto’s Public Markets Are Integrating Equity, Inclusion, and Reconciliation
April 27, 2023