About the Belonging Forum

The Belonging Forum aims to understand the crisis of social isolation and loneliness and connect people and partners to create real and practical solutions.

We envision a world where everyone feels belonging through connection to community, rootedness in nature, agency in civic life, and a sense of shared purpose with others.

To achieve this, we conduct landmark research to understand experiences of belonging around the world.

The Belonging Forum also convenes partners and the public to generate simple, practical solutions that have cross-party support within the UK to combat social isolation and build a sense of belonging.

We advocate for embedding belonging into decision-making processes in the public and private sector to address social problems stemming from isolation, such as mental health challenges and fragmented communities.

The Belonging Forum was founded by Kim Samuel, an activist, author, educator, and leading voice in the global movement for Belonging.


About Us

The Belonging Forum was founded by Kim Samuel, an activist, author, educator, and leading voice in the global movement for belonging.

Kim is the founder of the Samuel Centre for Social Connectedness, a global organisation that has been partnering with leading advocacy groups and research organisations to combat social isolation and build belonging around the world since 2017.

Kim is also the author of On Belonging: Finding Connection in an Age of Isolation (Abrams Press 2022), which is an exploration into the crisis of social isolation and the fundamental right to belong.

As part of her role as an educator, Kim is also a Research Fellow at the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), Fellow at Green Templeton College, The University of Oxford, and regularly lectures at a number of internationally recognised institutions, including The University of Oxford, Harvard University and London School of Economics. Kim also created and taught a first-of-its-kind course in the study of social isolation at McGill University.

Kim serves on the steering committee of the Together Coalition, the executive committee and board of Special Olympics International, and the disability rights advisory committee of Human Rights Watch. She is a frequent commentator in outlets including the Globe and Mail, The Express, LBC, The Independent, The Boston Globe, USA Today, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and Psychology Today.

For interview requests or speaking engagements with Kim Samuel, please get in touch.