Seoul has introduced 'relationship recovery' as the next phase of its loneliness policy. After establishing a 24-hour counseling hotline and providing safe spaces for citizens, the city aims to create an environment where people can meet and maintain relationships in their daily lives. The initiative, dubbed 'No More Loneliness 2.0,' is expected to broaden the city's approach from a focus on counseling and welfare to a more comprehensive urban strategy.
According to the city, Mayor Oh Se-hoon recently announced at a lecture in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, that he is preparing 'No More Loneliness 2.0' and will soon reveal specific details. He mentioned using sports activities, gardening, and caring for plants and pets as means to alleviate isolation and suggested expanding the initiative into a collaborative project involving various city departments.
This approach reflects a recognition of the limitations of addressing loneliness solely through welfare department counseling and support. Even if individuals share their struggles through counseling, if they return to a daily life without people to meet or places to go, it becomes challenging to foster relationship recovery. The key to 'No More Loneliness 2.0' lies in how individuals will fill their time after counseling.
A recent example of this direction is the 'Seoul Itda Place,' which opened on September 23 in Seongdong District. This facility serves as a central hub supporting citizens in preventing loneliness, recovering from isolation, and forming social connections. It includes a 24-hour 'Goodbye Loneliness 120' call center, face-to-face counseling rooms, a youth mental convenience store, healing and exchange program spaces, and cultural performance areas.
Since the launch of its loneliness policy in 2024, Seoul has seen significant demand for its services. From April 2025 to August this year, the 'Goodbye Loneliness 120' hotline received over 80,000 calls, while the mental convenience store welcomed approximately 164,000 visitors. The number of mental convenience store locations, currently at 19, is set to expand to 25 by the end of the year.
However, the number of counseling sessions and visitors does not necessarily equate to success in alleviating loneliness. It remains to be seen how many citizens have utilized the services and how their daily lives have changed. Key questions include whether individuals have started going outside, found places to return to, and maintained the relationships they have worked hard to rebuild.
Mayor Oh addressed this point during the opening ceremony of the Seoul Itda Place, stating, 'The success of the No More Loneliness policy can be partially measured by numbers, but the extent to which people can repeatedly visit a place comfortably cannot be quantified.' He emphasized the importance of 'social infrastructure' and 'third places'—locations where individuals can be alone without pressure or engage in conversation when they wish.
This statement hints at the policy direction of 'No More Loneliness 2.0.' It aims to go beyond merely informing citizens about counseling services and instead utilize parks, gardens, sports facilities, and cultural spaces as foundations for relationship building. Engaging in sports, gardening, and cultural activities can serve as opportunities for people to connect.
The programs at Seoul Itda Place reflect this trend. They plan to offer counseling, exchange, and social participation programs for youth, while providing emotional healing, relationship building, and prevention programs for middle-aged and older adults. Families of individuals experiencing isolation will receive counseling, education, and support for self-help groups. Programs open to the general public will include 'garden prescriptions' utilizing Seoul Forest, cultural and artistic activities, and social dining.
A key challenge will be to connect program participation to ongoing relationships. Attending a single event is different from developing a desire to meet someone again the following week. Citizens should be able to participate at their own pace and return even after a break, establishing a foundation for relationship recovery. It is also crucial to ensure that the process of encouraging interaction does not become an additional burden.
As this initiative expands across multiple departments, the methods of connection must be clarified. If the sports, gardening, and cultural departments merely increase their individual programs, citizens will have to seek out the necessary services again. A system must be established to connect the needs identified during counseling with local activities and to support ongoing relationships after participation, ensuring the significance of this collaborative project.
Details regarding the specific projects, budget, and timeline for 'No More Loneliness 2.0' have yet to be disclosed. What is confirmed is the intention to connect various city departments and urban spaces to loneliness prevention beyond the welfare sector. Key points to watch for in future announcements will include how existing facilities and programs will be integrated and what support will be provided to ensure that isolated citizens can effectively utilize these resources.
Seoul's loneliness policy is poised to expand from counseling hotlines and mental convenience stores to support relationship recovery. Future success will not be measured solely by the number of counseling sessions or visitors but by whether citizens who sought help have found places to go and people to meet, and whether those relationships endure in their daily lives.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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