These college students moonlight as ‘grandkids' for hire. Seniors love it.

How does one Albuquerque organization address social isolation among senior citizens? It recruits teens to teach technologies 101. Teeniors creates intergenerational relationships by encouraging teens to spend time with seniors and teach them how to adequately use technology like smart phones or computer applications.

The nonprofit Home Share Oregon and Silvernest, a platform similar to Match.com, aim to match those at risk for homelessness with homeowners who have room to spare. These programs provide monetary incentives and an opportunity to build relationships, all while combatting inflation and high rent costs. Since launching in 2021, the initiative has successfully linked 250 pairs of renters and homeowners through compatibility matching.

OneClick.chat is an online video chatting and live events platform, with 50,000 users in over 30 countries, that helps older adults connect with old friends and meet new people. The technology is designed to be easy to master, with key features such as chat, mute, and screen-share buttons more obviously placed, easy to access, and remaining accessible throughout the conversation. Meeting scheduling is also made to be simple. Users, who pay $15/month for the service, get a unique meeting room URL that never changes. Using the services doesn’t require people to download software or create an account.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, Our Bridge in Bosnia provided services to seniors to combat social isolation. Despite having to shut down in-person classes due to the pandemic, both groups now use online art and music classes to reach people who are isolated and at risk of depression. The group joined with the Serbian association, Art Aparat, to offer singing, art, and handicraft classes by video. In person connections are preferred and missed, but the group adapted to changing circumstances to provide even more isolated seniors with social connections, and the partnership allows for cultural exchanges.

DOROT is a non-profit organization that matches seniors with younger adult volunteers for social visits to combat isolation and loneliness and to promote intergenerational friendships. Many of the seniors are widowers and social isolation can lead to negative health consequences. The organization also delivers fresh meals and holds other events, but was unable to operate as usual once the Covid-19 pandemic hit, so DOROT helped seniors set up Zoom for online conferencing. The group has matched 500 seniors with volunteers and advises similar programs across the country. Many pairs have formed deep friendships.

To help senior citizens through the coronavirus pandemic, teens and young adults are teaching the older people in their communities how to utilize technology. From "using FaceTime, finding reputable news on Facebook, and ordering groceries online," the skills these young volunteers are teaching help bridge the gap between social distancing and isolation.

Mail carriers in France are stepping in to provide health checks to the vulnerable and elderly as part of a program known as Veiller Sur Mes Parents – or “Watch Over My Parents.” Not only does this service help create connections between community members and provide reassurance to family members, but it also acts as an additional stream of revenue for La Poste by expanding the postal work job description to include "picking up prescriptions, returning library books, and delivering flowers."

House calls are not new to the medicine field, but they are becoming more predominant as doctors look for ways to expand access to those that aren't able to make it into an office. Focusing mostly on "disabled, chronically ill, elderly, and other at-risk populations," doctors are utilizing technological advancements to bring the care to the patient, a practice that also allows them a chance to assess their home situation.

A new charity app called Millie builds upon tested app dynamics like online payment services, gamification, and social networks to encourage millennials to give to charities and organizations of their choosing. Rather than the more typical one-off, peer-to-peer, reactive giving, Millie adds an element of matchmaking to philanthropy, similar to dating apps.

In the United Kingdom, loneliness is an epidemic. Those who feel chronically lonely may have weaker immune systems, an increased risk of cancer, and shorter life spans. These afflictions and risks associated with loneliness put a strain on the country's National Health Service. Many organizations like AgeUK, which offers companionship matching, and Silverline, which offers a 24-hour conversation helpline, specifically target the elderly. But research shows that young people are lonely too, which is why these solutions are an important addition to fighting loneliness.