Overview
- The association warned of a “decade of loneliness” affecting all generations, citing digital retreat, economic strain and global disruptions with risks of alienation and radicalization.
- It proposed a dedicated “Fonds gegen Einsamkeit” of €500 million to run over the current legislative period.
- Suggested financing options include European Union funds, unspent federal budget money or reallocations within existing departmental budgets.
- Municipalities were identified as the first to detect loneliness and the most effective level for countermeasures, with a call to build caring communities and expand offers for encounters, participation and counseling.
- The group urged libraries and adult‑education centres to remain reliably open without prolonged, vacation or staff‑related closures or early closing, while noting no federal or state funding commitment has been made.