The RECETAS project, funded by the European program Horizon 2020, brings together six major cities in Europe, Latin America, and Australia: Barcelona, Cuenca, Helsinki, Marseille, Melbourne, and Prague.
How are the RECETAS teams in Marseille and Melbourne addressing these issues in their interventions? How to fully harness the potential of Nature-Based Social Prescribing to combat loneliness, improve overall well-being, and promote social cohesion, despite barriers that prevent participation in group activities?
RECETAS project implementation in Marseille, France
Led by a team of urban planners and social psychologists from Marseille’s Public Hospital, Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Marseille (AP-HM), RECETAS targets individuals experiencing economic difficulties, as they are particularly at risk of facing periods of loneliness. These individuals are invited to participate in weekly group activities held in various parks and natural spaces surrounding the city.
The participant groups are composed of people living in shelters, emergency housing, social residences, those attending social centers, or mutual help groups.
Their backgrounds and living conditions can vary significantly: some have migratory pathways, whether newly arrived or not. Others are dealing with psychological distress or live with disabilities. All are united by the same reality: a daily life marked by multiple factors of vulnerabilities.
« In sociology, vulnerability results from interactions between available social networks, structural inequalities, and individual identities, » explains Lucie Cattaneo, a health social psychologist, hospital research engineer, and co-facilitator of the RECETAS project within the Public Health Department of AP-HM. Thus, while individuals integrated into support networks are better prepared to face challenges, those from disadvantaged backgrounds face higher risks in accessing healthcare, education, and employment.
Encouraging participants engagement despite daily obstacles
Due to their individual situations, participants may face scheduling difficulties in their everyday life, related to their jobs or training (or the search for one or the other), to the time devoted to various administrative tasks, to medical appointments dictated by their health conditions, or to the family organization of single mothers.
A second type of barrier identified with these groups is « a recurring fear related to meeting others, » notes Juliette Hemery, an urban planner, hospital research engineer, and facilitator of the RECETAS project in the Public Health Department of AP-HM. « More specifically, an apprehension that may resemble social anxiety or fear of being discriminated against. »
Joining a group, encountering the public at places visited during outings (museums, parks, beaches, etc.), all the situations presenting opportunities for social interaction, which can be challenging for people facing multiple social vulnerabilities. Avoidant behaviors of such places and events can develop and contribute to long-term psychosocial distress.
As the program has progressed and the groups have been engaged, the team working on the RECETAS project in Marseille has implemented concrete actions to address these issues. Notably, they have established lasting cooperation with partner organizations, whose professionals play a crucial role in facilitating participant involvement.
Addressing the stigma of loneliness
« It’s interesting to note that this stigma is one that, by definition, is rarely addressed. We suggest it to be a taboo, » observes the RECETAS team in Marseille, who have chosen not to systematically raise the topic of loneliness during interventions. For participants, it’s important that the group activities remain moments of escape and well-being.
However, the topic can naturally arise during discussions, and psychosocial workshops have allowed for safe, group-based exploration of experiences of isolation and loneliness.
Is loneliness due to a lack of psychosocial skills? Although this belief remains dominant, recent studies highlight the lack of evidence supporting it. Nevertheless, it leads to the stigmatization of lonely individuals, with numerous studies showing that they are perceived as less likable, less adapted, less trustworthy, or less competent.
Again, studies point out that individuals avoiddiscussing their loneliness for fear of rejection, which reinforces their isolation and diminishes their self-esteem. The implications are significant in the field. This is reflected in both the discomfort participants may feel and the professionals’ reluctance to directly address the issue of loneliness, preferring a positive approach that emphasizes promoting social connections.
RECETAS Project in Melbourne, Australia
In many countries, including Australia, policies and systems create significant barriers for LGBTIQA+ asylum seekers and refugees to establish social connections and access basic socio-economic needs, such as housing, jobs, and education. This leaves them isolated in an unfamiliar culture and exacerbates their vulnerability to loneliness.
These are the groups that the RECETAS pilot in Melbourne has chosen to focus on, whose vulnerability to loneliness stems from the intersection of political status and the experiences of LGBTQIA+ individuals, compounded by migration-related violence.
« The combination of social isolation and economic instability increases the risk of mental health issues and further marginalisation, making it even more difficult for them to build a stable life, » adds Nerkez Opacin, a social science researcher at Melbourne’s School of Global, Urban and Social Studies.
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