Making Connections
A Series with Allison Gilbert on the Loneliness Epidemic
Join us in March through June for Making Connections
Long before COVID, people in the U.S. and across the world have struggled with loneliness, isolation, and lack of social connection. In 2023, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared loneliness an epidemic and announced a strategy to help reverse this alarming trend. And months later, journalist Allison Gilbert reported for the New York Times about the appointment of world-renowned therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer as New York State’s Ambassador to Loneliness, the first such position in the country. Reimagine and Allison are co-hosting a new series to learn about strategies to build deeper connections, particularly among the most vulnerable.
The conversation kicks off with U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, Dr. Ruth Westheimer – psychosexual therapist, author, and lecturer – and Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, director of the Social Connection & Health Lab at Brigham Young University and lead scientific editor of the Surgeon General’s Advisory.
Upcoming Events
Long before COVID, people in the U.S. and across the world have struggled with loneliness, isolation, and lack of social connection. In 2023, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared loneliness an epidemic and announced a strategy to help reverse this alarming trend. And months later, journalist Allison Gilbert reported for the New York Times about the appointment of world-renowned therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer as New York State’s Ambassador to Loneliness, the first such position in the country. Reimagine and Allison are co-hosting a new series to learn about strategies to build deeper connections, particularly among the most vulnerable.
At this session, Allison, educator Isaias Hernandez, and sociologist Pamela Prickett discuss systems and inequities that isolate people throughout the arc of the life cycle? What role does nature, the built environment, and public infrastructure have in forming stronger connections among families and communities? Everyone is welcome. Bring your most pressing questions!
About Reimagine
Reimagine is a nonprofit organization catalyzing a uniquely powerful community–people of different backgrounds, ages, races, and faiths (and no faith) coming together in the hopes of healing ourselves and the world. We specifically support each other in facing adversity, loss, and mortality and–at our own pace– actively channeling life's biggest challenges into meaningful action and growth.
Speaker
Isaias Hernandez is an educator and creative devoted to improving environmental literacy through content creation, storytelling, and public engagements. Isaias is more commonly known by his moniker, Queer Brown Vegan: the independent media platform he started to bring intersectional environmental education to all. His journey to deconstruct complex issues, while centering diversity and authenticity, has resonated with a worldwide audience. He also collaborates with other leaders from the private and public sectors to uplift and produce stories of change for his independent web series, Sustainable Jobs and Teaching Climate Together. Isaias has been featured in several noteworthy publications, including Vogue, New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and Yale Climate Communications. His social media advocacy earned him recognition as a top climate creator by Harvard C-CHANGE. As a public speaker, he’s presented for New York Times, Nike, Environmental Media Association, Billie Eilish’s Overheated Summit, Harvard University, Deloitte, and more. He recently co-produced the Symbiocene event series in London and New York City.
Pamela Prickett is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Amsterdam, where she teaches and conducts research on urban inequality, community-building, death/dying, religion, gender, and mental health. She has written two books about Los Angeles, including Believing in South Central: Everyday Islam in the City of Angels (Chicago 2021) and The Unclaimed: Abandonment and Hope in the City of Angels (Crown 2024), coauthored with Stefan Timmermans. Before academia, Pamela worked in television as a producer and host. She earned her PhD in sociology from UCLA.
https://www.pamelaprickett.com/
Host
Allison Gilbert is the host of Reimagine’s Passed and Present conversation series and author and co-author of numerous books, including Listen, World!: How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America’s Most-Read Woman; Passed and Present: Keeping Memories of Loved Ones Alive; and Always Too Soon: Voices of Support for Those Who Have Lost Both Parents. She serves on the Advisory Board of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors and is a past Board Member of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief.
A regular contributor to the New York Times and other publications, Allison launched Pub Day, a literary consultancy, to help writers best-position their book ideas for publication.
Track:
Wellness, COVID-19, Isolation & Connection,
Long before COVID, people in the U.S. and across the world have struggled with loneliness, isolation, and lack of social connection. In 2023, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared loneliness an epidemic and announced a strategy to help reverse this alarming trend. And months later, journalist Allison Gilbert reported for the New York Times about the appointment of world-renowned therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer as New York State’s Ambassador to Loneliness, the first such position in the country. Reimagine and Allison are co-hosting a new series to learn about strategies to build deeper connections, particularly among the most vulnerable.
At the final conversation of this series, Allison will be joined by Anna Quindlen (bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist) and Dr. Tasha Golden (Director of Research at the International Arts + Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine) for a special conversation about the impact creativity has on our mental health and overall wellbeing. Everyone is welcome and to bring your most pressing questions!
About Reimagine
Reimagine is a nonprofit organization catalyzing a uniquely powerful community–people of different backgrounds, ages, races, and faiths (and no faith) coming together in the hopes of healing ourselves and the world. We specifically support each other in facing adversity, loss, and mortality and–at our own pace– actively channeling life's biggest challenges into meaningful action and growth.
Speakers
Anna Quindlen’s latest book, After Annie, is a novel about grief and connection, family and friendship, and the power of love to transcend feelings of isolation that often follow the death of a loved one. She is also the author of many bestselling books including the #1 New York Times bestselling novel Rise and Shine, the #1 bestselling memoir Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake, and A Short Guide to a Happy Life. Her other novels include Object Lessons, Blessings, One True Thing, the Oprah Book Club Selection Black and Blue, Every Last One, Still Life with Bread Crumbs, Miller’s Valley, and Alternate Side. While a columnist at The New York Times she won the Pulitzer Prize and published two collections, Living Out Loud and Thinking Out Loud. Her Newsweek columns were collected in Loud and Clear.
Her national bestseller, Write for Your Life, explores the many ways putting words to the page is healing and transformative and a critical means to find community. Using examples from past, present, and future — from Anne Frank to Toni Morrison, from love letters written after World War II to journal reflections from nurses and doctors today — Write for Your Life vividly illuminates the ways in which writing connects us to ourselves and to those we cherish. Drawing on her personal experiences not just as a writer but as a mother and daughter, Quindlen makes the case that recording our daily lives in writing is essential.
Tasha Golden, PhD is an international speaker, health scientist, and career songwriter. Currently Director of Research at the International Arts + Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Dr. Golden’s work has investigated the health and well-being impacts of arts, culture, and creativity—not only for individuals, but for communities, workplaces, and societies. Golden has served as an advisor on several national and international health initiatives, and is adjunct faculty for the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine. Recently she led the pilot evaluation of CultureRx in Massachusetts: the first arts-on-prescription model in the U.S.
Holding a PhD in Public Health Sciences, Golden is also a career artist and entrepreneur. As singer-songwriter for the critically acclaimed band Ellery, she toured full-time for many years, and her songs appear in feature films and TV dramas (ABC, SHOWTIME, FOX, NETFLIX, etc.). She is the author of Once You Had Hands (Humanist Press) and founder of Project Uncaged: a creative writing program for incarcerated girls that supports self-expression and elevates girls’ voices. Golden’s unique background drives her success as a speaker and thought leader. Her keynotes and workshops help creatives, cause-driven brands, nonprofit leaders, academics, and healthcare providers enhance and reimagine their work. As a consultant, she helps organizations apply the science of arts, creativity, and wellbeing to further their goals.
Host
Allison Gilbert is host of Reimagine’s “Making Connections” and “Passed and Present” conversation series and co-author with Dr. Ruth Westheimer of the forthcoming book, The Joy of Connections: 100 Ways to Beat Loneliness and Live a Happier and More Meaningful Life (Rodale: October 22, 2024). Pre-order The Joy of Connections here.
Allison is also author and co-author of numerous other books, including Listen, World!: How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America’s Most-Read Woman; Passed and Present: Keeping Memories of Loved Ones Alive; and Always Too Soon: Voices of Support for Those Who Have Lost Both Parents. She serves on the Advisory Board of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors and is a past Board Member of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief. A regular contributor to the New York Times and other publications, Allison launched Pub Day, a literary consultancy, to help women writers best-position their book ideas for publication.
Track:
Wellness, COVID-19, Isolation & Connection,Past Events
April 18, 2024
Long before COVID, people in the U.S. and across the world have struggled with loneliness, isolation, and lack of social connection. In 2023, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared loneliness an epidemic and announced a strategy to help reverse this alarming trend. And months later, journalist Allison Gilbert reported for the New York Times about the appointment of world-renowned therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer as New York State’s Ambassador to Loneliness, the first such position in the country. Reimagine and Allison are co-hosting a new series to learn about strategies to build deeper connections, particularly among the most vulnerable.
This session offers insights on loneliness from two leading grief experts and writers: psychotherapist Meghan Riordan Jarvis and veteran journalist and author Leslie Gray Streeter. Everyone is welcome and to bring your most pressing questions!
About Reimagine
Reimagine is a nonprofit organization catalyzing a uniquely powerful community–people of different backgrounds, ages, races, and faiths (and no faith) coming together in the hopes of healing ourselves and the world. We specifically support each other in facing adversity, loss, and mortality and–at our own pace– actively channeling life's biggest challenges into meaningful action and growth.
Speakers
Meghan Riordan Jarvis, MA, LCSW is an author, podcast host, two-time Tedx Speaker, and psychotherapist specializing in trauma and grief and loss. After the deaths of both of her parents within two years of each other Meghan began speaking on a larger scale about the importance of supporting grievers. Founder of MRJ Consulting, Meghan and her team consult regularly with companies addressing grief in the workplace. Meghan’s podcast “Grief is My Side Hustle” and grief writing workshop “grief mates” can be found at www.meghanriordanjarvis.com. Meghan’s memoir, The End of The Hour, published with Zibby Books in November 2023, and Can Anyone Tell Me Why: Essential Questions About Grief and Loss publishes with Sounds True Media in 2024.
Leslie Gray Streeter is an author, veteran journalist and speaker. whose memoir Black Widow was published in March 2020 by Little, Brown and Company. She is the lifestyle columnist for the Baltimore Banner, and the co-host of the pop culture podcast “Fine Beats and Cheeses.” Leslie was the longtime entertainment and lifestyle columnist and writer for the Palm Beach Post. A native of Baltimore, Md and a University of Maryland graduate, she and her work have been featured in The Miami Herald, the Washington Post, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Atlantic, CNN, the Today show, SiriusXM, O, The Oprah Magazine and more. She lives with her son Brooks in her hometown of Baltimore. She’s a slow runner, an amateur vegan cook and a true crime and “Law and Order” enthusiast.
https://lesliegraystreeter.com/
Host
Allison Gilbert is host of Reimagine’s “Making Connections” and “Passed and Present” conversation series and co-author with Dr. Ruth Westheimer of the forthcoming book, The Joy of Connections: 100 Ways to Beat Loneliness and Live a Happier and More Meaningful Life (Rodale: October 22, 2024). Pre-order The Joy of Connections here.
Allison is also author and co-author of numerous other books, including Listen, World!: How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America’s Most-Read Woman; Passed and Present: Keeping Memories of Loved Ones Alive; and Always Too Soon: Voices of Support for Those Who Have Lost Both Parents. She serves on the Advisory Board of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors and is a past Board Member of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief. A regular contributor to the New York Times and other publications, Allison launched Pub Day, a literary consultancy, to help women writers best-position their book ideas for publication.
Track:
Wellness, COVID-19, Isolation & Connection,Zoom
March 21, 2024
Long before COVID, people in the U.S. and across the world have struggled with loneliness, isolation, and lack of social connection. In 2023, United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared loneliness an epidemic and announced a strategy to help reverse this alarming trend. And months later, journalist Allison Gilbert reported for the New York Times about the appointment of world-renowned therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer as New York State’s Ambassador to Loneliness, the first such position in the country. Reimagine and Allison are co-hosting a new series to learn about strategies to build deeper connections, particularly among the most vulnerable.
The conversation kicks off with U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, Dr. Ruth Westheimer – psychosexual therapist, author, and lecturer – and Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, director of the Social Connection & Health Lab at Brigham Young University and lead scientific editor of the Surgeon General’s Advisory. Everyone is welcome. Bring your most pressing questions!
About Reimagine
Reimagine is a nonprofit organization catalyzing a uniquely powerful community–people of different backgrounds, ages, races, and faiths (and no faith) coming together in the hopes of healing ourselves and the world. We specifically support each other in facing adversity, loss, and mortality and–at our own pace– actively channeling life's biggest challenges into meaningful action and growth.
Speakers
Vice Admiral Vivek H. Murthy, MD, MBA, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in March 2021 to serve as the 21st Surgeon General of the United States. As the nation’s top doctor, Dr. Vivek Murthy helps to advance the health and well-being of all Americans and has worked to address critical public health issues. He has issued Surgeon General Advisories on the youth mental health crisis and social media’s impact on youth mental health, the epidemic of loneliness and isolation, and on burnout in the health worker community. Dr. Murthy also issued a Surgeon General’s Framework on mental health in the workplace and he is the first Surgeon General to host a podcast, House Calls with Dr. Vivek Murthy, where he invites guests and listeners to explore how we can all build more connected and meaningful lives.
As Vice Admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, Dr. Murthy oversees more than 6,000 dedicated public health officers serving underserved and vulnerable populations.
Dr. Murthy previously served as the 19th Surgeon General under President Obama. Raised in Miami, Dr. Murthy received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard, his medical degree from the Yale School of Medicine, and his Masters in Business Administration from the Yale School of Management.
Twitter/X: @Surgeon_General
Instagram: @u.s.surgeongeneral
Facebook: /USSurgeonGeneral
Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer, America’s most famous sex therapist, is now the first Ambassador to Loneliness in the United States, appointed by New York State Governor Kathy Hochul in November 2023. Breaking stigmas and pioneering the field of media sex education, the long-time cultural icon, is now taking on the loneliness epidemic, helping individuals live more meaningful and connected lives.
For more than 40 years, beginning in the 1980’s with her nationally syndicated radio show Sexually Speaking and her nightly cable TV program The Dr. Ruth Show, Dr. Westheimer remains the country’s most beloved advice-giver – offering blunt, sensible guidance to millions through media interviews and her popular X/Twitter account @AskDrRuth.
Through her decades-long career, Dr. Westheimer has written a celebrated newspaper column and authored or co-authored 47 books, including Sex For Dummies, which has been sold in 27 countries and translated into 17 languages. She has written several books for children, including Grandma On Wheels and Leopold the Turtle.
Born in Germany and sent to an orphanage in Switzerland when she was 10 years old to escape the Holocaust, Dr. Westheimer’s fascinating life has been portrayed on the stage in Becoming Dr. Ruth, a show that played Off Broadway to critical acclaim and continues to be performed around the country, and in the documentary, Ask Dr. Ruth, currently running on Hulu.
Dr. Westheimer obtained a Masters Degree in Sociology from the New School of Social Research and received a Doctorate of Education from Columbia University Teachers College. She has taught at Princeton, Yale, Columbia, Lehman College, Brooklyn College, Adelphi University, and West Point.
A board member of the YMHA of Washington Heights, the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and Ben Gurion University, Dr. Westheimer has two children, four grandchildren, and resides in New York City.
Julianne Holt-Lunstad is a professor of psychology and neuroscience, and director of the Social Connection & Health Lab at Brigham Young University. She is also the founding scientific chair and board member for the U.S. Foundation for Social Connection and the Global Initiative on Loneliness and Connection. Dr. Holt-Lunstad is an international scientific expert whose research focuses on the individual and population health effects, biological mechanisms, and effective strategies to mitigate risk and promote protection associated with social connection. Her research has been seminal in the recognition of social isolation and loneliness as risk factors for early mortality. As the lead scientific editor for a US Surgeon General’s Advisory and Framework for a National Strategy, her work also focuses on translating evidence into practice and policy. She serves as a scientific advisor and regularly consults for organizations across sectors aimed at addressing this issue. She has provided expert testimony in a US Congressional Hearing, served as a member of multiple National Academy of Sciences consensus committees, the UK Cross Departmental Loneliness Team, European Joint Research Council, World Health Organization, and a subject matter expert for the Gravity Project, Commit to Connect the national clearinghouse of interventions, and the CDC. Her work has been widely recognized within her discipline, including several awards, and is regularly highlighted in major media outlets.
https://www.julianneholtlunstad.com/
Host
Allison Gilbert is the host of Reimagine’s Passed and Present conversation series and author and co-author of numerous books, including Listen, World!: How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America’s Most-Read Woman; Passed and Present: Keeping Memories of Loved Ones Alive; and Always Too Soon: Voices of Support for Those Who Have Lost Both Parents. She serves on the Advisory Board of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors and is a past Board Member of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief.
A regular contributor to the New York Times and other publications, Allison launched Pub Day, a literary consultancy, to help writers best-position their book ideas for publication.
Track:
Wellness, COVID-19, Isolation & Connection,Zoom
