There’s been much talk lately about a growing loneliness epidemic. It was declared a global public health concern by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2023, when 16% of people worldwide—one in six—said they experience loneliness. 

In Canada, the number is slightly lower overall: 13% (one in 10) of those aged 15 and older said they deal with loneliness, according to Stats Canada. But this percentage grows significantly when looking at young adults—one in five people aged 15 to 24 say they always or often feel lonely. 

Older adults also face an increased risk of loneliness, with 43% of Canadians aged 50 years+ at risk of social isolation, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Factors like increased internet and social media use, a rise in remote work, and isolation born out of the COVID-19 pandemic have all led to the crisis, which experts say can have deadly consequences, including an increased risk of stroke, heart disease, and premature death.

It’s clear that people everywhere are struggling to connect and Victorians are no different.

Within the r/VictoriaBC Reddit community, there are hundreds of threads in which people—especially newcomers—ask how they can make friends here, with many agreeing that this city can be particularly tough. 

But a small group of young Victoria residents wants to change that.

Creating in-person connections for Victorians

LampPost Social is a platform dedicated to building community in Greater Victoria. It began as a newsletter for finding local events, but has since grown into a multi-platform hub for making connections in the city.

Co-founder Simon Larocque told Capital Daily that after graduating from UVic, he found it more difficult to know what was going on around town. He was on the hunt for things to do, and began volunteering at the Victoria Jazz Fest, going to parades, and filling his days with community gatherings.

Then one day, he got a call from his roommate Jared Leary who pitched him an idea for an event platform. Leary told Larocque the city needed a source for everything happening around town, including more “core niche things, like the underground music show or this pop up market.”

The two agreed that Leary would handle the web design and backend, and Larocque would do the socializing and information gathering. 

They started with a newsletter, then expanded to an Instagram page, then a website, and, most recently, an app.

“I'd work in the morning, and then I'd go to events in the evening and just, like, find different things around the city,” Larocque said.

While working other jobs, both men poured themselves into this passion project during their free time. Two years into running LampPost, the platform has become their full-time job. 

They’re not just gathering event details these days—though that’s still a big part of the platform—they’re hosting events of their own. Their friend Pierre-Olivier McGeough joined the team to manage event planning, helping to grow their attendance rates. 

Larocque said he’s found that one of the barriers to making and keeping friends is the effort that’s required—it takes time and consistency to build a lasting relationship.

“It's hard to consistently show up,” he said. “But you see it a lot online that the sacrifice for a community is inconvenience.”

Larocque and Leary noticed that, although people were showing up to the events they hosted, they weren’t connecting with each other.

The two decided to replicate a method used at their university to help people commit to getting to know one another. 

Larocque’s program had a system called “cohorts” where a smaller group of students—around 40-50—would be grouped in the same classes while pursuing their degrees. Students in these groups would see each other nearly everyday and would come to know one another intimately over time. 

Inspired by this approach, the idea for LampPost Cohorts was born.

Taking the time to grow relationships

“We launched the Cohort program with the thought of, and kind of backed by experience and listening to different podcasts of people saying, you really get to know someone doing different experiences with the same people over time,” Larocque said.

LampPost Cohorts gathers up to 12 people to take part in different activities over the course of six to eight weeks in the hope it will lead to long-term friendships.

“We do pottery painting, run and cold dip, pub crawls, bowling, craft night, game night with just this array of people,” Larocque said. 

So far, Larocque estimates that approximately 150 to 200 people have gone through the Cohort program—and “a ton” of friendships have blossomed as a result.

“You end up really seeing this crew of people that want to get out and want to meet one another.”

The Cohorts have grown beyond just Larocque and Leary. Those who have gone through the program are encouraged to start their own Cohort, leading to a knock-on effect of friendship building.

Currently, most Cohort participants are in their 20s and 30s, but Larocque says the team hopes to expand to older Victorians looking to make friends. He encourages anyone interested in helping LampPost build a program for older adults to reach out to him.

The Cohorts can be specific to different interests or personalities. There are Active Cohorts for those who like to bond through exercise and sports, Cozy Cohorts for more introverted people who enjoy crafting and quieter get-togethers, and Food Cohorts for those who want to explore the local restaurant scene.

More events and gatherings coming this summer

Larocque said many of LampPost’s Cohort grads continue to show up to events. They were among the 200 people that showed up for a pub crawl in downtown Victoria—there’s another one happening on St. Patrick’s Day—and the 300+ who came together for one of their popular Giant Picnic gatherings. In November, they held a weekend music festival that drew close to 1K people, he said.

The LampPost team can be spotted at events hosted by City of Victoria and City of Langford. It’s the group with the signature beer bus in tow, serving up local brews. They also launched in Vancouver late last year, helping people in the big city connect.

And there’s plenty more to come as the weather warms up. Larocque says the team plans to host a volleyball league this summer, with games every Saturday and extra time built in for socializing. 

“We genuinely believe cities are better when people feel connected to them,” Larocque said.