During Ramadan, virtual spaces help stave off the loneliness for some Muslims

Using artificial intelligence, social media companies can quickly identify and reach out to those at risk for self-harm. Pinterest, a San Francisco-based social media company, is employing AI to support its user’s emotional well-being. Those who search for content related to self-harm receive links to support resources thanks to the help of collaborations with groups like the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and Vibrant Emotional Health. The effort has significantly reduced content related to self-harm on the platform.

#Agtwitter provides a space for social connection among farmers. What started as a hashtag to disseminate advice about farming practices and farm equipment has grown into a digital space where people can connect and even vent about their personal challenges. In a region characterized by high suicide rates, Agtwitter helps lessen the often-isolating expanses of America’s mountain west.

In the 1980s, a virtual messaging network, then known as bulletin board systems (BBSs), acted as a support group for many who were in search of peer support and reliable information as the AIDS epidemic spread. Although the site was a grassroots effort with little to no financial stability, it grew to 500 daily users and 100 messages posted per day.

What started as a small group of people taking pictures of waste in their communities and tagging it on Instagram with the hashtag #Litterati, turned into a global effort, and even an app, to map and dispose of trash. Users can upload to the app an image of trash and machine-learning algorithm can tag it location, material, and company who made it. The city of San Francisco asked the makers of the app for help documenting cigarette butts and tobacco products on its streets and ended up winning a legal victory over the tobacco industry to increase the taxes on their products.

From Google's India-focused app Neighbourly to the wellknown Nextdoor app, social media specifically targeted at connecting neighbors is gaining ground. Whether being used to rate neighborhood attractions, encourage borrowing or sharing of resources, report suspicious neighborhood activity or simply to find a way to make connections, these apps are aimed at decreasing social isolation and increasing community interactions.

Recent statists are showing that an alarming number of veterinarians are committing suicide due to a variety of reasons from emotional stress to financial strain. Not One More Vet, a Facebook group started by a veterinarian in California, is serving as an unofficial mental health resource for many in the field.

For many refugees living in camps and on the move, mobile phones can be a life line to families and the outside world. Phones can help organize political activities, arrange medical supplies, and so much more. But although SIM cards are fairly cheap now, data can be expensive. To address this, a Facebook group called Phone Credit for Refugees and Displaced People, or PC4R, raises funds for refugees to top up their mobile phones to support free and dignified communication.

Farmers are using the hashtag #agtwitter to discuss mental health challenges, provide information about resources, and organize offline support. In areas of the country where studies consistently show mental health resources are scarce and suicide rates high, twitter provides a space for peer-to-peer support.

Millions of Americans suffer form mental health problems every year, and accessing care can be daunting, difficult, and expensive. A Slack channel, called 18percent, allows online users to anonymously access a message board to discuss their mental health problems and draw on support from people suffering from similar issues. This is part of a new trend in mental health care that utilizes technology to break down the barriers that many face when seeking help.

An app called Olio addresses the issue of food waste in London by recruiting 1,000 "food waste heroes" to gather excess food from restaurants and redistribute them amongst the neighborhood using the Olio platform. Anyone from students to the elderly use the app, and participants say it makes them feel better connected to their community. The app is now used in 32 countries.