Key messages and policy recommendations of the one day conference on "Loneliness in the European Union: Policies at work" : Brussels, 6 June 2023

On June 6th, 2023, the European Commission Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion hosted a high-level conference in Brussels. The conference marked the conclusion of the European Parliament pilot project on "Monitoring Loneliness in Europe" carried out together with the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. The objectives of the conference were to: (i) present the pilot project, including results from the first ever EU-wide survey on loneliness, (ii) discuss key findings with experts, top academics and practitioners, (iii) share knowledge and experiences with policy makers and practitioners on effective solutions to combat loneliness. Several key lessons and recommendations were drawn from the event: (i) loneliness is a public health issue with far-reaching consequences at societal level, including social cohesion and participation in democracy, (ii) actions to tackle loneliness should be integrated across all policy areas, (iii) better and long-term data collection on loneliness is needed to better understand its causes and develop tangible solutions to the problem