Today it has become commonplace to see neighbors not knowing each other. This is often attributed to the hectic lifestyles of people as well as poor community designs while organizing events and reshaping the urban design can improve the situation.
To start, people are becoming increasingly reluctant to engage in interaction with neighbors. This is because of people prioritizing other responsibilities over interaction with neighbors such as enjoying the company of family, and close friends; personal development and simply engaging in hobbies. All these factors mean there is little to no time for meeting up with other people, including neighbors.
Additionally, today’s urban planning has nothing to do with uniting people in one place. Indeed, urban engineers often maximize their efforts towards better and more efficient urban layouts, such as parking and housing amenities. However, they usually neglect the importance of communal spaces and gathering spots, which have a lot to do with encouraging communication between neighbors.
However, several steps can be taken to tackle the problem. First of all, governments could take a radical approach to foster communication between neighbors. In this way, organizing public events would justify its relevance and build a bridge toward better interaction among people. Take my country- Uzbekistan, where annual celebrations like Navruz bring people together to celebrate the spring equinox with food, dance, plays and songs.
Secondly, the reformation of urban designs would be another step towards strong bonds among neighbors. Urban planners, for example, could do this by establishing more shared spaces such as gardens, parks, and gathering spots in neighborhoods, where people can share similar activities and, thereby, foster relationships with one another.
In conclusion, busy lifestyles and inadequate urban environments appear to be the primary reasons behind the lack of interaction among neighbors. However, once people are encouraged to participate in celebrations and appropriate urban infrastructure is likely to make them willing to build connections with each other.