A World We Dare to Imagine

Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death. Life is such a precious opportunity that it’s sad to see this occurring so often. We have hotline prevention services, but it is really making an impact? Let’s create a foundation to actually create better direct communication. We need a solution to create more intimate relationships that can build a stronger bond with people who face depression and hardship. A USC student recently committed suicide here in our own neighborhood. What if we had a better chance to save her life? We live in a growing digital age where we can connect to almost anywhere in the world, but why are we failing to reach the most important people who need our attention? Why aren’t we doing something more impactful to improve our suicide prevention initiates?

For my better world idea, I would like to focus on a critical issue that occurs all around the world. Recent statistics show that there is an average of 123 suicides committed per day. Now, there are many suicide prevention opportunities, but I feel like it’s outdated. We live in the 21st Century where you can reach almost anyone all across the world. In a world with smartphones, virtual, and augmented reality, we have to update our system. After doing some research, I found that suicide prevention hotlines are so outdated. Phone calls are a source of indirect communication that lacks a connection to gain empathy with desperate individuals. In a world of social media, I want to pitch an idea to create a new platform to target more individuals in need. Some potential ideas are to create a new smartphone app that not only gives people to opportunity to reach out, but to video chat or meet in person to gain a more personal connection with each other. The goal is to create a more direct communication with supporters and victims through issuing a new current platform through social media. This new initiative will focus on bringing the community closer to help a major social problem across the world.