As the Dutch population ages, a growing number of elderly are experiencing loneliness and social isolation. Loneliness has far-reaching impacts, contributing to mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, as well as physical health problems like sleep issues. It is vital to explore approaches for prevention and intervention to mitigate its impact.

Art, culture and heritage can play a pivotal role in connecting individuals. Stedelijk Museum Schiedam, which focuses on art, heritage and societal engagement, exemplifies innovative approaches to involving citizens in their
museum. This positions the museum ideally to investigate how art, culture, and heritage can foster connections among elderly. The museums’ dedication to be of relevance to its community further underscores its suitability for this question.

The project follows the double diamond
method. Beginning with an exploration of existing literature on the roles museums
nowadays take on, how art and heritage can be used as a means to connect elderly, and how loneliness affects the lives of elderly, followed by interviews. The insights of this research phase served as inspiration to define the design goal and design requirements for the next phase.

The chosen design goal was formulated as:

Empower individual elderly residents in Schiedam to connect with each other through heritage by adding personal value, taking into account cultural differences.
Ideas were generated through brainstorming sessions, resulting in a museum programme with the goal to empower elderly to exchange memories and form connections, thereby realising their own value. The programme titled ‘Schiedam Vertelt’, is structured into five phases: inviting, stimulating, familiarisation, connecting and appreciating. The programme is intended to be repeated over the years. Within the development of the programme, it was included as requirements to adopt a transformative experience
approach and to include art and/or heritage. The programme was evaluated and updated through brainstorms, conversations,
enactment sessions and user tests.
Ultimately, a guide was created to effectively communicate the findings, outlining each phase of the programme and offering guidelines for programme creators, designers and others interested in implementing it. This guide was evaluated by TUDelft IDE master students and a city programmer from Stedelijk Museum Schiedam.

The report concludes that the initial tested phases of the programme, which represent the first steps toward forming connections, hold promise to engage the elderly. However further adaptations and testing are required, detailed in the recommendations.