Lennart Lajboschitz of Folkehuset Absalon

Have we optimized ourselves into loneliness?  What if the antidote to social isolation isn’t technology or convenience, but shared meals, table tennis, and a little intentional friction?

In this episode of CLOSER, Carol Coletta and Mark Wallace talk with Lennart Lajboschitz, founder of Absalon, the beloved Copenhagen community house that welcomes nearly 600,000 visitors a year.

Built inside a former church, Absalon has become an international model for social connection through communal dining, shared activities, and the radical idea that cities should create more opportunities for strangers to become neighbors.

Lennart shares how tiny design choices can transform human behavior, and why hosts may be the most important people in public space. From communal dinners to music bingo to 500-person table tennis nights, this conversation explores how intentional spaces can foster kindness, belonging, and joy.

CLOSER is a conversation hosted by Carol Coletta and Mark Wallace about the strategies that make cities more social—and why that is the smartest investment in the urban toolkit.