The Loss Of Third Places Is Making Us Lonelier Than Ever, But We Can Do Something To Get Them Back

Before the pandemic, a group of friends and I found ourselves in a cafe during a rainstorm. We got some coffee, started talking, and then a guy approached me and offered to play a game of chess. I knew nothing about strategy beyond how each piece moved, but I still gave it a shot. The game went well, I lost, of course, both of our friend groups chatted for a bit, and we all went our merry way.

Today, that cafe is closed. Permanently. It also used to be a hub for weekly meetings of aspiring writers. A similar encounter could happen in any other cafe today, I guess, but I still look at it through the lens of disappearing third places. I feel like after the pandemic, I just don’t hang out with friends and strangers as much as I used to, and it’s mostly because there are so few places to do so.

Even as a raging introvert, I miss being with and around people. Online spaces are ripe with jokes like “The people yearn for community,” but it’s not really a joke, is it? We are social beings and need human connection, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find it. Some people are taking matters into their own hands and opening social clubs in their saunas and backyards, but shouldn’t local governments also take responsibility and make it easier for us to gather in communities?

Bored Panda decided to dive into the complex issue of third places: why are they disappearing, how and why certain communities are disproportionately pushed out of them, and how we can battle crippling loneliness by coming together and creating such places for ourselves. We spoke with mental health experts, sociologists, and community organizers to get to the bottom of the issue and hear their ideas for solving our loneliness problem.