Belonging is both formal membership and, more importantly, feeling valued, respected, and safe to be your full self. It boosts confidence, social skills, and resilience across families, friend groups, cultural/religious communities, teams, and online spaces.

 

True belonging welcomes differences—diverse perspectives make communities stronger. For “I Belong!”, artists can portray feelings of belonging or exclusion using symbolism or personal stories, and should use the artist statement to explain how their work connects to the theme.