Toast to Roast reduces loneliness and creates meaningful friendships between neighbours of different generations by eating toast together ︎
Answering the RSA brief “How might we create joyful place-based opportunities for people across generations to improve planetary health?”
RSA Planet Generation Brief Winner 2023
Problem
Isolation and generational divide in communities is prominent with information dependency shifting from neighbourly help to online resources, further enabling the digital divide. With loneliness increasingly affecting gen-z and considered more dangerous than obesity, alongside the cost-of-living crisis facilitating social isolation, the future of trusting communities is at risk.Process
Mortimer is a village with high property ownership giving potential to longer lasting connections and although Mortimer holds community events, there was a lack of interventions mixing generations. Upon visiting the village, I found a lack of in-person advertisement for these events, mainly relying on social media for communication, isolating generations further. These issues alongside a survey regarding the cost-of-living crisis revealing locals want to share energy resources, led to me to Toast to Roast.Solution
Toast to Roast encourages neighbourhood friendships through low commitment toast, building community trust to eventually cook a roast dinner together, sharing food and energy resources. With the help of local facilities and community events, all generations can get toastier with neighbours with every sliceThe Application
Users sign up to Toast to Roast to become a Toaster (host a Toast at their house) or a Toastee (go to a Toast at someone else’s house) and connect with neighbours over low commitment toast. This allows neighbours to comfortably build up friendships where they will be able to cook a more committed roast dinner together which helps with sharing heating, electricity, food and reduces food waste.
The digital application aims to avoid ageist assumptions to build trust between generations whilst allowing communication in the village without abuse or exclusion, it does this by -
The digital application aims to avoid ageist assumptions to build trust between generations whilst allowing communication in the village without abuse or exclusion, it does this by -
︎No photos and limited personal information and no forums on the app to avoid ageism and abuse
︎ID authentication and lack of specific locations until verified on system to avoid safety concerns
︎Prompts available to help people who struggle with social interactions
︎Messages labelled as “connect” for a community feeling
︎Toast to Roast scale allows you to see who you have connected with in your village
︎Depending on the scale, new prompts will be added and neighbours will be pushed towards cooking a roast dinner together
︎ID authentication and lack of specific locations until verified on system to avoid safety concerns
︎Prompts available to help people who struggle with social interactions
︎Messages labelled as “connect” for a community feeling
︎Toast to Roast scale allows you to see who you have connected with in your village
︎Depending on the scale, new prompts will be added and neighbours will be pushed towards cooking a roast dinner together
The Events
︎Touchpoints and events allow anyone to get involved in Toast to Roast regardless of generation, income and digital divide︎Tech and Toast creates long term impact by educating people on how to use general technology and the Toast to Roast app whilst also being a fun way to meet neighbours in a communal village space which provides heating and electricity.
︎National Toast Day is an example of how Toast to Roast can be scalable to villages across the UK, creating street parties with toast so neighbours can meet and bond over favourite bread and toppings.