Megan Smith interviewed by Spectrum News 1 for ‘Craft Cafe as a Third Space’

Megan Smith, Ph.D., assistant teaching professor in the Department of Sociology, was interviewed by Spectrum News 1 for the feature “A craft cafe in Charlotte is another way people are connecting in third spaces.”

Spectrum News 1 profiled La Bodeguita, a Charlotte craft cafe created by therapist and artist Michelle Fernandez. The community-building space offers hands-on activities ranging from beading to vision-board workshops and is designed to help people connect through creativity.

The segment explores the growing importance of “third spaces,” social settings outside home and work where people can build relationships. A 2021 survey from the American Survey Center reported 58% of Americans who have a third space feel closer to their neighbors, and activity-based venues can help counter loneliness and digital isolation.

Smith provided sociological context on why these spaces matter, pointing to prolonged technology use, passive online interaction and post-pandemic habits that make in-person connection more difficult.

“Whether that’s streaming, gaming for a long time, resorting or moving towards AI chat bots as companionship because that’s a friend that’s available 24/7 and then social media, that has also prevented people from making friends,” Smith said. “So technology itself isn’t the culprit of loneliness, it’s the way in which we use it in a passive way.”

Creative outlets, she said, offer low-pressure ways for people to express themselves and build relationships organically.

“Creativity is known to help people express their feelings, and it also is something that you can do side-by-side with someone and not feel like you have to talk to them all the time,” Smith said. “That seems to be something that can happen more organically, and it’s also very therapeutic.”

Watch the full segment and read more on Spectrum News 1.

Photos via Spectrum News 1.