Lockdown made it hard to meet people. It’s been very hard for old people who live alone and for young people who want to practise speaking a foreign language. Julia and Clément found a way to bring them together – and found that old and young offer each other so much more.
Old people and young people often live alone and often don’t have much contact with people from other generations, even though we can all learn a lot from people of different ages. When lockdown came, loneliness and lack of human contact was an even bigger problem.
With lockdown, people discovered how easy it was to meet and talk on video calls. Julia and Clément created ShareAmi to link up old and young, to practise speaking a foreign language but also just to become “dear friends” and learn from someone older or younger.
Clément Boxebeld and Julia Mourri run the Oldyssey project and launched ShareAmi last year. You can find out more about ShareAmi in English on their website.
The Guardian also took a look at ShareAmi recently.
For a look at some of the research showing the benefits of what they call “inter-generational friendships”, this article from Inc offers some insight.
WoW! introduces children aged 8-12 to fixers, problem-solvers and changemakers, inspiring the new generation with a world of possibility.