SOLiEDAD: an experience recognized in research on unwanted loneliness
Unwanted loneliness is one of the great social challenges of our time. It is not an individual phenomenon, nor a simple emotional state, but a complex and multi-causal reality that reflects deep tensions in the way we live, relate, and organize our communities. Aware of this, the European Patronage of the Elderly Foundation (PEM) has just published the Study of effective participatory practices in addressing the risks of Unwanted Loneliness in older people, a rigorous work that analyzes community experiences in eight Spanish autonomous communities.
Among the initiatives selected, the report highlights the SOLiEDAD project, developed in Zamora by the International Center on Aging (CENIE), as one of the most relevant and transformative experiences. This recognition is even more valuable as it is part of a study funded by IMSERSO, which seeks to identify practices with potential impact and scalability throughout the national territory.
A project born in Zamora with a transformative vocation
SOLiEDAD was launched in 2022 within the framework of the Program for a Long-Lived Society, co-financed by the INTERREG Spain–Portugal Program (POCTEP) of the European Union. Its objective was clear from the outset: to address the loneliness of older people through community action and applied research, generating not only knowledge but also concrete interventions capable of improving the lives of those who participate.
The project unfolded in several phases. After an initial diagnosis and an awareness campaign, guided meetings were organized in which older people from Zamora —who had expressed feeling lonely— shared reflections, resources, and life experiences. These spaces were not assistance sessions, but genuine forums for participation, facilitated by senior volunteers from the city itself and supported by young volunteers from the University School of Nursing of Zamora, an institution that played a central role in the methodological and operational development.
In this way, SOLiEDAD became more than a study: it was a community intervention that created bonds, built trust, and allowed research to be translated into lived practices.
The vision of researcher Elisa Sala Mozos
The PEM Foundation’s report includes the testimony of Elisa Sala Mozos, CENIE researcher and director of the SOLiEDAD project. Her words reflect a lucid and critical view of the nature of loneliness:
“I don’t know if we need to eradicate loneliness —I don’t think so— because loneliness is an emotion, just like sadness and joy. But perhaps what we should ask ourselves is what are the causes behind this feeling and its great prevalence in today’s societies.”
This reflection connects with the study’s general approach: loneliness cannot be reduced to an individual problem that can be solved with isolated activities. It is a phenomenon influenced by cultural, economic, urban, and social factors, and one that requires collective, preventive, and community-based responses.
Elisa Sala’s contribution is not only conceptual. She has managed to build bridges between research and practice, demonstrating that an academic project can become a driver of real change if it is rooted in the community and built with the active participation of older people.
The role of the University School of Nursing of Zamora
Recognition of the SOLiEDAD project also highlights the role of the University School of Nursing of Zamora, part of the University of Salamanca. This institution assumed a key role in the facilitation of sessions, volunteer training, and participant support. Its involvement not only gave academic and methodological strength to the project but also enabled a close relationship with the local community, reinforcing trust and the continuity of actions.
The report emphasizes that this local leadership was decisive for the success of SOLiEDAD. In a territory marked by depopulation and aging, the active participation of a reference institution such as the School of Nursing brought credibility, rootedness, and mobilization capacity.
Beyond assistance: community and coexistence
What sets SOLiEDAD apart from other initiatives is its preventive and participatory approach. It is not about “alleviating” loneliness with occasional activities, but about creating community: fostering encounters, reciprocity, and the construction of a shared sense of belonging. In the words of the report itself, the positive impact of the project lies not so much in the specific activity, but in everything that happens around it: informal conversations, mutual support, and the trust that arises within a group that feels part of something bigger.
The results speak for themselves. Those who participated in SOLiEDAD not only expanded their network of relationships but also improved their emotional well-being and regained a sense of belonging. Some people expressed that, after the meetings, they had found new friendships, resumed personal care routines, or reduced their need for frequent medical visits.
A model for the future
The PEM Foundation’s recognition confirms that SOLiEDAD is not just a local experience, but a model with replication potential in other territories. Its combination of research, community action, and intergenerational participation offers an innovative formula for addressing unwanted loneliness from a comprehensive perspective.
At a time when loneliness is perceived as one of the “silent epidemics” of the 21st century, projects like this show that the answer is not only in new technologies or care services, but in recovering the strength of coexistence and the protagonism of older people in community building.
The SOLiEDAD project is, ultimately, an example of how research can become transformative action when built through participation. Its recognition in the Study of effective participatory practices… legitimizes the path undertaken and reinforces the conviction that unwanted loneliness can be addressed with community-based, participatory, and sustainable strategies.
In Zamora, loneliness has ceased to be a private silence and has become a collective issue, shared and open to new responses.