Informal participation methods can become an interesting resource to deal with the lack of social participation and loneliness from a bottom-up perspective. Among them, cafés in their many adaptations are an example and an increasingly recurring practice worldwide.
Without them, much of the intellectual and artistic dynamism typical of the Enlightenment or of the Roaring Twenties wouldn’t have been probably the same, let alone Woody Allen’s film Midnight in Paris. Cafés have historically been cities’ throbbing hearts in periods of great changes, where thinkers, scholars, artists, and other intellectuals used to gather to debate, affirm their own status, and be an active part in shaping knowledge with their own ideas. Back then, the diffusion of cafés and, in general, of places where to meet and discuss with other people on compelling issues was obviously elitist, since it only involved highly educated or aristocratic personalities. Yet, it is in those exemplifying contexts that the power of informal places, such as cafés, therefore of informal participation, can be best understood.
How can this be of any help today? Well, cafés never stopped being thriving places, they have always adapted following the changing habits, tastes, and ideas over the time. Their soul is shaped by the people that hang out there. While everything else has changed, including human relationships, the aspect of cafés that has remained unvaried throughout history is the ability to bring people together, to offer an intimate environment where to feel at ease, a place where to chat informally while sharing the pleasure of sipping a drink and tasting comfort treats with friends or even strangers.
Human relationships have considerably changed for sure, and serious social problems such as social exclusion and loneliness have significantly worsened especially among the most vulnerable and as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.[NC1] Recurring to formal participation methods only, considering them as the proper means of building a sense of community belonging, is not enough, and probably never was. People that are left unheard often complain of not feeling adequately included and listened to whenever they are involved in formal fora. So, what can be done to enhance greater inclusion and participation? Informal participation methods may offer some interesting answers. Cafés in their many adaptations are an example and an increasingly recurring practice worldwide.
This is the case of the “Chatty Café Scheme”, an initiative launched by Alex Hoskyn in 2017 in the UK, which was awarded the “Innovation for Ageing” competition in 2019. This project intended to tackle loneliness by involving people of different ages and from diverse societal layers. In practice, it translated into designating a “Chatter & Natter” table in all the cafés joining the project, where any person could sit if they felt like talking to other customers. As a proof of its success, more than 1,000 cafés based not only in the UK, but also in Florida and Australia, participated in the initiative.
While loneliness is becoming increasingly transversal to all ages, it often comes with vulnerable groups unfortunately, that are frequently stigmatised in the society and struggle to maintain social relations or to build new ones. This is the challenge that “Memory Cafés” intend to tackle. This kind of cafés have been described by the Wisconsin’s Alzheimer Institute as an evolving best practice, which addresses people suffering from dementia and their caregivers, welcoming both people that have been already diagnosed with the disease and others that haven’t yet. These target groups are provided with a safe and unstigmatized place, where they can share their experiences, make friends with other people, and enjoy the informal, yet intimate, café-like atmosphere. These sessions are not only intended to raise awareness on dementia, but, more importantly, to engage participants in conversations on diverse topics, to stimulate their participation and social interaction.
Last, but not least, in a more literal perspective, cafés can also become a place where to remain active while working and where to enhance exchanges among different generations. Adults aged 60 or older make up 50% of the workforce at Vollpension, a social project that has been implemented in Vienna, with the purpose to offer a space where different generations could meet and connect. Besides this, Vollpension gives older adults the opportunity to stay socially committed and active while making a living with their culinary savoir-faire.
It is no news that the older one gets, the more nostalgic they will feel about the past, because somehow it seems that everything used to be easier and better back then. Yet, this might also become an obstacle for us to recognise our own potential and value in the present. Informal participation methods remind us of how it is the simplest things in life, such as a chat around a café table, that can bring people together, help them build self-confidence and reconnect within a community.