More than 25% of the world's population reports feelings of social isolation and loneliness. More than 150,000 people between the ages of 15 and 29 die by suicide each year.

In the U.S., more than 150 million people live in areas with a shortage of mental health professionals. Zimbabwe, a country of 16 million inhabitants, has only 13 psychiatrists and 20 clinical psychologists. The Friendship Bank project trains community volunteers with no prior medical or mental health training to provide talk therapy from wooden benches in parks.