The Solution

The Relational Center confronts the root problem of isolation head on. With our three-pronged approach to restoring our essential ties, we directly target the conditions that lead to isolation while minimizing its painful effects. We envision a transformed social landscape with thriving networks of diverse, healthy relationships that sustain individual resilience.

Recover: Heal relational trauma Our first prong is to heal the relational trauma we all endure as we struggle to accommodate a socially impoverished world. When we have ways to feed our deep hunger for connection with collaborative, reciprocal relationships, we can recover our strength and our resiliency. Our Counseling approach, drawing from social neuroscience and evolutionary psychology, works to reengage participants' natural abilities to connect and collaborate.

Relearn: Build relational skills Our second prong is to teach individuals skills to put their relational inclinations to good use, helping them prevent the effects of isolation. We want to expand peoples' capacity to stay engaged with each other even when it is difficult, enabling them to meet respectfully, listen carefully, and cooperate. Our Public Education activities are designed to inform participants of the harms of isolation and to promote skills to reengage.

Rejoin: Expand relational opportunities Our third prong is to expand relational opportunities through intentional community action. Hungry for contact and equipped with essential skills, we may still lack options for participating in a community. Our Community Action Networks are examples of this kind of opportunity, where participants can come together, build trust, identify shared needs and concerns, and organize a community-wide initiative for change.