Working for Peace: Imagining New Paradigms with Youth
Institutional Affiliation
University of Manitoba
Start Date
January 2026
End Date
January 2026
Proposal Type
Presentation
Proposal Format
On-campus
Proposal Description
In a 2023 report, the former Surgeon General of the United States, Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, defined loneliness as “distressing experience that results from perceived isolation or unmet need between an individual’s preferred and actual experience.” Its antithesis, social connection, is “an important social determinant of health, and more broadly, of community well-being, including (but not limited to) population health, community resilience when natural hazards strike, community safety, economic prosperity, and representative government.” Although social connection is a “fundamental human need,” today a “significant portion of Americans lack adequate social connection,” while at the same time, polarization is at “near historic highs” (Murthy, 2023).
In 2024, the World Happiness Report dropped America’s ranking eight spots from the previous year–an all-time low. This was the first time since the report was launched 12 years ago that “the U.S. did not rank among the world's 20 happiest countries.” In particular, “young people report feeling less supported by friends and family, less free to make life choices, more stressed and less satisfied with their living conditions” (Saric, 2024).
Many Americans, including our youth, are unhappy and lonely. While the task of countering these trends are daunting, in this article, I will explore the broader issues described above in greater detail, and demonstrate how a program I developed for students in New Jersey called Leadership for Educational Liberation (LEL) created opportunities for connection, belonging, and community that continue through to today. In addition, I will provide insight into how this program may be translated into different contexts for youth to counter the continued threats of division and polarization to the U.S. and around the world.
Working for Peace: Imagining New Paradigms with Youth
In a 2023 report, the former Surgeon General of the United States, Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, defined loneliness as “distressing experience that results from perceived isolation or unmet need between an individual’s preferred and actual experience.” Its antithesis, social connection, is “an important social determinant of health, and more broadly, of community well-being, including (but not limited to) population health, community resilience when natural hazards strike, community safety, economic prosperity, and representative government.” Although social connection is a “fundamental human need,” today a “significant portion of Americans lack adequate social connection,” while at the same time, polarization is at “near historic highs” (Murthy, 2023).
In 2024, the World Happiness Report dropped America’s ranking eight spots from the previous year–an all-time low. This was the first time since the report was launched 12 years ago that “the U.S. did not rank among the world's 20 happiest countries.” In particular, “young people report feeling less supported by friends and family, less free to make life choices, more stressed and less satisfied with their living conditions” (Saric, 2024).
Many Americans, including our youth, are unhappy and lonely. While the task of countering these trends are daunting, in this article, I will explore the broader issues described above in greater detail, and demonstrate how a program I developed for students in New Jersey called Leadership for Educational Liberation (LEL) created opportunities for connection, belonging, and community that continue through to today. In addition, I will provide insight into how this program may be translated into different contexts for youth to counter the continued threats of division and polarization to the U.S. and around the world.