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If you’re concerned about ecosystem collapse and climate displacement, you might look to a One Health approach for possible solutions. Techquity could provide a roadmap for countering any of the potential ills that AI may bring, despite all the good that its disciples promise. And if the troubles on our planet have you feeling unmoored, try seeking out belonging and even some enchantment.

These are the buzzwords that global health and development experts say we’ll hear more of in 2025 — a vocab mix of pending global catastrophe and possible remedy.

Belonging

It’s something of a paradox. Our planet is filled with a dizzying number of humans (8 billion and counting), many of whom are connected to one another electronically. And yet more and more people are lonely. Dr. Vivek Murthy, the current U.S. Surgeon General, has spoken of an epidemic of loneliness and isolation..

“Loneliness is far more than just a bad feeling,” he wrote in an advisory in 2023. “It harms both individual and societal health. It is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety and premature death.” Loneliness is a global concern, as evidenced by the World Health Organization creating an international commission to address it as a public health crisis in late 2023.

Murthy invites us to “build a movement to mend the social fabric” by deeply listening, sharing a meal or volunteering. “The keys to human connection are simple but extraordinarily powerful.”

In Kenya, Sitawa Wafula, an independent mental health advocate, has developed her own approach. She launched and ran a support line that connected more than 11,000 people with mental health resources in its first year. “Many users shared that simply being heard by someone who understood their struggles created an immediate sense of connection,” Wafula says.

That’s why she believes that belonging will be a global buzzword this year. “For those facing stigma and alienation,” says Wafula, “belonging acted as a protective factor, encouraging them to seek further support and adopt healthier coping mechanisms.”

Wafula has also facilitated storytelling workshops among those in the African diaspora, many of whom face challenges surrounding identity and disconnection in their new homes. “Through sharing and affirming each other’s experiences,” she says, “they developed a shared sense of belonging that not only reduced isolation but also fostered resilience.”

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Leif Parsons for NPR

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