Sarah van Gelder | The Revolution Where You Live - Rebuilding Community in an Isolated World

How can we recover the essential human connections that make life meaningful and sustainable? How can we create a world where neighbors know each other's names, children play freely outdoors, and no parent faces the overwhelming challenges of raising children alone? 

Sarah van Gelder, founder of YES Magazine and author of "The Revolution Where You Live," joins us to explore the troubling fragmentation of our social structures and the promising alternatives emerging in response. A growing number of Danish households are single-person dwellings, and approximately 95% of Danish children attend daycare. There is a global trend toward smaller household units and increasing isolation that contributes to what the U.S. Surgeon General has called a mental health crisis of loneliness.

Drawing from her experience raising children in a co-housing community and her 12,000-mile journey exploring grassroots solutions across America, Sarah van Gelder shares examples of how intentional communities create joy, support, and meaning. From worker-owned cooperatives transforming economic power dynamics to neighbourhood initiatives that rebuild social connections, these stories challenge the dominant narrative that privacy and independence should be our highest priorities.

The conversation delves into the cultural forces driving our disconnection—media that emphasizes danger over cooperation, economic pressures that separate families, and the glorification of individualism that leaves people feeling they must solve all problems alone. 

The path toward more connected living doesn't necessarily require radical lifestyle changes—simple actions like organizing neighborhood gatherings or creating mutual aid networks can begin to rebuild our social fabric. 

🔗  Relevant links

• https://substack.com/@howwerise 
• https://www.facebook.com/Sarah.van.Gelder/ 
• https://www.yesmagazine.org/ 
• https://www.instagram.com/sarahrvangelder/ 
• https://x.com/sarahvangelder
• https://www.amazon.com/stores/Sarah-van-Gelder/author/B006ASKW2M 

🗓️ Recorded August 6th, 2025. 📍 The Addisons, Whityham, UK

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