Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert Lynch recently joined the Foundation for Art and Healing (FAH) to celebrate the launch of The UnLoneliness Project, a signature initiative developed by FAH and designed to address the often overlooked but mounting problem of loneliness within society. A growing body of research has demonstrated that loneliness, in addition to negatively contributing to mental health, carries the risk of early death at a rate comparable to smoking. FAH is partnering with Americans for the Arts and the Northeast Business Group on Health (NEBGH) to raise awareness of the physical and mental consequences of loneliness, and to provide creative-arts-based solutions to reduce the stigma around this growing epidemic.

In addition to Lynch, other speakers at the launch included NEBGH CEO Laurel Pickering, fashion model, mental health services advocate and Project Tee founder Edyth Hughes, and FAH president Jeremy Nobel, M.D., M.P.H.

Lynch spoke of the transformative power of the arts in addressing health issues, specifically in the military and veteran populations. This has been exemplified through the work of the National Initiative for Arts and Health in the Military, a collaborative effort led by Americans for the Arts which has provided arts-based resources to help military service members, veterans and their families heal, connect with, and reintegrate into civilian society.

The creators of the UnLoneliness Project similarly believe in the healing powers of art. As isolation and its repercussions continue to reduce productivity and drive up companies’ health-related expenses, workplace loneliness has become one of its primary focuses. Through partnership with business groups such as NEBGH, this initiative ultimately aims to provide to employers low-cost and easily deployed programs, harnessing creativity in engaging and therapeutic ways.

Jeremy Nobel, president of FAH, highlighted the irony of a loneliness epidemic in an age peppered by the rise of social media, which, by its nature, serves as a virtual vehicle for connection. However, social media has reduced and even replaced face-to-face interactions, paradoxically acting as a barrier to direct human contact . By using some of these arts-based tools, the project hopes to bridge the gaps that have created isolation and loneliness and to mitigate the rise of loneliness in society.

For more information about the project, please visit www.unloneliness.org.

Read the press release here.

Additional links:

• "Loneliness in the Workplace" describes the initial push of the project, along with a download for Creatively Connected, which includes summary and sample exercise.
• "The UnLoneliness Project Launches with Good Cheer!" is a blog post reporting on the launch event, including a gallery of photos taken that evening.
• “America’s Hidden Public Health Crisis—Loneliness—Directly Impacts the Bottom Line. Here’s How Creative Expression and Engagement in the Workplace Can Help” is a blog post written by Jeremy Nobel, M.D., M.P.H. for Americans for the Arts’ ARTSBlog.