Abstract

Demographic change is intensifying challenges in the provision of care. Caring communities (CCs) are considered a promising approach to strengthening home- and family-based care arrangements through collective engagement. However, concerns have been raised regarding the risk of “community capitalism” and the potential overburdening of civil society. Against this backdrop, the question arises as to what contribution town hall meetings (THMs) can make to fostering shared state responsibility and, consequently, to stabilizing caring communities.

Based on a qualitative analysis of three town hall meetings conducted במסגרת the “EXPsolidarity” project, it became evident that these formats create spaces of experience in which institutional and political actors at the municipal level, together with family caregivers, build trust, shape relationships, develop solidarity, and translate impulses into concrete measures. The findings highlight that caring communities do not emerge solely in a “bottom-up” manner, but are significantly strengthened through the active involvement of institutional and political actors. This implies that town hall meetings can be understood as bridging tools that connect civil society concerns with shared state responsibility, thereby contributing to the sustainable development of caring communities.