Vancouver's reputation as a "lonely" city could soon see a shake-up.
It's no secret that Vancouverites oftentimes struggle to meet and make friends. Some have tried to make Vancouver a friendlier place through a giant friend-making project and an AI socializing platform.
Now, a local group is attempting the same by painting the town yellow.
A recent "hackathon" event called the Brand Battle for Good tasked local businesses to come up with solutions to tackle the isolation many Vancouverites experience.
The team from office furniture business Inbox Booths emerged victorious with a colourful idea, which they call "Hello Yello" and aims to "paint the town yellow."
Hello Yello plans to "apply yellow paint to existing features like park benches, wheelchair accessible platforms, picnic tables and café tables," to encourage spontaneous conversations, according to a press release.
The volunteer-driven initiative has already made an Instagram account.
"It's the ultimate icebreaker," the group explains. "Public spaces [are] where everyone understands there is a mutual willingness to have a conversation."
The idea sparked when the team identified Vancouver's "biggest problem," which they say is the locals' inward mindset, which the group describes as one that withdraws and doesn't expect to engage.
"Our big dream at Hello Yello is to spark a worldwide movement of authentic, human interaction, and spontaneous conversations. If we can do it in Vancouver we can do it anywhere."
Hello Yello is set to launch a year from now.
