When was the last time someone asked how you were doing—and you believed they genuinely wanted to know?
If you were getting harassed in a group chat, who would you text and trust to actually step in?
Have you ever left an event feeling more alone than when you arrived?
If you were sick in bed for three days, who would check on you unprompted?
What happens when a medical appointment becomes the closest thing to a meaningful conversation all week?
For many, the answers to these questions are painful: I’m not sure. No one. I don’t know who I’d call. And that’s not a personal failure. It’s the predictable result of a world where connection is harder to sustain: less time, more interaction through screens, more mobility, and fewer places to belong.
Today, more and more people—across ages, backgrounds, and life circumstances—feel lonely, and it takes a real toll. Social connection is not a “nice-to-have”; it is a driver of health and well-being, with measurable effects on longevity and happiness. It matters at the societal level, too: loneliness contributes to higher healthcare costs, weaker school and workplace outcomes, fraying civic trust, and increased violence.
At its core, loneliness is a quality-of-life issue. While it intersects many challenges Battery Powered has already addressed—physical and mental health, youth well-being, addiction, political polarization, gun violence, community resilience—social connection is more than a tool for solving other problems. This theme invites us to tackle loneliness head-on, so fewer people have to move through daily life without someone to call, somewhere to belong, or knowing that they matter to others.
The opportunity for Battery Powered? The nation’s response to this profound challenge is still nascent, with researchers, policy advocates, organizers, and direct service providers just beginning to understand what effective action requires. Battery Powered—itself a community rooted in purposeful connection—has a unique opportunity to help shape this emerging field as we seek to answer this round’s guiding question:
How do we create a world where connection is easier and people are less lonely?
We gratefully acknowledge Robert Martin, author of this Issue Brief. Robert is a San Francisco-based strategy and collaboration consultant who helps nonprofit organizations, funders, coalitions and networks, and public-private partnerships bcome more effective.
NEXT: Who Is Affected by Loneliness? →