00:01He's taking a stand against loneliness.
00:0439-year-old Felipe Garcia.
00:08Our mission is to listen and to be with them.
00:15Felipe and police officer Pedro Castaneda go door-to-door in Lisbon's Marvila quarter.
00:21They're doing rounds for the Radar Project, part of a European initiative in which the city and the police work
00:27together to combat loneliness among seniors.
00:33We have an increasingly aging population. Families are smaller than they used to be and scattered apart.
00:40Many people work abroad, far from where they grew up. That's why so many families are fragmented.
00:52The Radar Project reports that a third of Lisbon's seniors, about 45,000 people, are at risk of loneliness.
01:01I feel very lonely. I'm all by myself.
01:07Half a million people call Lisbon home. The capital also hosts millions of tourists. They're part of the problem. But
01:15more on that later.
01:19Back to Felipe and Pedro. They're visiting citizens over 65 today.
01:25We're from the Radar Project and wanted to ask if we can offer you support with any problems you might
01:30have.
01:31Everything's fine for now.
01:34Officer Castaneda comes along to the home visits for security reasons. But that's not all.
01:42Our main focus is on serious situations, like isolation, abuse and criminal offences, where the police are needed.
01:51But we also want our presence to lend credibility to the project.
01:59Livia Pereira doesn't feel lonely because her granddaughter lives with her. But Felipe still tells her about the project just
02:06in case. She agrees that times have changed.
02:13We used to meet out here and chat with everyone. We were all doing well. We didn't go into each
02:20other's apartments. But there was a stronger sense of community among the neighbors.
02:27Now, tourism is worsening social isolation among locals as more and more homes are converted into short-term tourist rentals.
02:35The effects have not gone unnoticed at the Radar Project.
02:41Here in the Lumiar Quarter, a converted cargo van is serving as a mobile drop-in center for seniors. Maria
02:47Gaia is on duty today. She sees the growing number of tourist apartments as a threat to community cohesion.
02:56If your neighbor is a tourist, then they won't be staying for long. They want to go out, see the
03:04city, have a good time.
03:05They're not likely to concern themselves with any problems in the area.
03:1375-year-old Olinda Dos Santos is having her blood pressure and glucose checked. She lives alone and says she
03:20feels overwhelmed.
03:23I've always been nervous. Two years ago I fell and I haven't gotten back on my feet since. I can't
03:29do anything anymore. I can't cook. I can't take the bus. I have to take a cab.
03:36In cases like hers, the project headquarters decides how best to provide support.
03:42Mario Ruiz Andrei heads the project. His top priority is to foster greater solidarity in residential neighborhoods.
03:52We need to work together with local businesses to create a network of supporters and volunteers who will help us
03:58identify isolated residents so we can respond appropriately to their needs.
04:08In the Marvilla Quarter, the bakery staff will raise the alarm whenever they notice a resident is feeling lonely.
04:15Felipe is meeting with some of the neighbors. We ask what they think of the initiative.
04:20The radar project should be even more firmly established.
04:24Felipe sees the project as a starting point, but he also thinks the seniors should take matters into their own
04:30hands.
04:36I think it would help if people built their own support networks, instead of just trusting that projects like this
04:45will continue into the future.
04:51He knows that he too will have to build a support network to ward off loneliness when he grows old.
05:02I interesting everything from home is going on and taking a visit and outside interesting andunder.
05:04I just achieved that a bit of information coming.
05:04I buy the Onu Rear in.
05:04I'm in front of the camera, because of our presence in the details here.
05:04You
Comments