Evidence base
University of Colorado Boulder, Institute of Behavioral Science
As Community Spaces Disappear, New Research Warns of Health and Equity Risks
What it found
This piece reports on research examining the decline of "third places"—senior centres, churches, and other informal community spaces—for a general audience. It frames the disappearance of these spaces as a cause of loneliness, not merely a downstream effect of it, and connects this loss to broader health and equity concerns.
Why it matters for practice
This is journalistic coverage rather than the underlying study, so treat it as an accessible entry point into the argument rather than a source of primary evidence. Its value for practice is the framing: it positions physical infrastructure loss as an upstream driver worth intervening on, which matters for anyone designing programmes or making the case for funding community spaces.