Danielle Littman is still pretty new to Utah. She moved to the state about a year ago, but has already found several “third places.”

First places, explains the assistant professor in the U’s College of Social Work, are where you live—your dorm, apartment or house. Second places are your school or your work. But third places are community spaces beyond your home or classroom where you feel a sense of belonging, social connection and safe to be yourself.

“Some third places are more organized, like art classes or gyms, and some are more passive, like the library or a coffee shop,” says Littman, who studies the use and importance of third places. “On different days, we need different things. Sometimes you really want to talk and engage with people, and sometimes you want to just be. It’s valuable to have different types of third places that can meet your needs at a particular point in time.”

Finding third places is especially important for young people, particularly those who have marginalized identities, she says. These spaces allow individuals to connect with others who might have similar lived experiences or backgrounds, to explore different parts of their identities and to practice becoming who they are.

“That identity acceptance can be life-affirming, even lifesaving,” says Littman.

As fall semester begins and the U’s campus community springs back to life, Littman offered some suggestions for finding your third places.

First, she recommends exploring and spending time in places that already exist. “Go check out the different student centers and student lounges around campus,” she says. “Spend some time in the coffee shops and different parts of the Student Life Center. Find places where you feel good; where you feel like yourself.”

Attend different student club and resource fairs. “Think about what you were interested in before college, but also be open to new hobbies and experiences,” she says. “I had tap danced for 10 years, so when I got to college, I auditioned for the tap dance troupe. I didn’t make the cut, but that just forced me to find new communities!”

Littman notes that a third place does not need to be a physical space; it can also be time with people you trust. “I try to be a third place and to make my office a third place for my students,” she says.

Finally, she says it’s important to keep trying. Keep in mind that sometimes the timing isn’t right, or what works as a third place for one person might not work as a third place for another. Littman noted, “The farmers market is one of my favorite third places, but the way I spend time in that space is very different from the way my husband spends time there. It’s not really one of his third places.”

“You might feel a little uncomfortable or even vulnerable at first. That’s okay,” says Littman. “I recently joined a mountain bike group. I was so nervous at my first meeting! But I shared that with the woman standing next to me, and it helped us build a connection and made me feel more comfortable. That’s exactly what third places are all about.”