Our story

On March 3, 2019, the idea behind the association was born in the minds of a group of six students who, recognizing the situation of rampant stress, anxiety and problems related to studying, investigated the services already offered and identified an alternative solution not yet present:

An association that offered support to students that was not given by psychologists, for a fee, and with limited sessions, but by their peers who wanted to listen to them anonymously, for free, and to help them socializing and learning how their university works …

This project is proposed at the university listening desk, then to the CUG (Single Guarantee Committee) and, having received their support, reaches the top when the meeting between the needs and offers of three large entities occurs: the university, the Telefono Amico, and DEB.

Thus a collaboration was born in which Professor Marco Sangermano acts as an intermediary and impartial representative of the three factions, initial contact person of the association and its founder together with the six students.

The collaboration consists of training provided by Telefono Amico to the association’s volunteers and interested students and university staff, who will then be able to carry out their project, while the university gets a team of students who can lighten the amount of requests who come to the listening desk and help their students.

On 12 July 2019, the association is registered with the Revenue Agency, officially being born.

In March 2021 the Politoamico course takes place, training more than thirty volunteers to listen according to the dogmas of Telefono Amico.

In July 2021, the association activates the DEBBot service, first anonymous listening service via telegram chat.

In September 2021 the association is accepted in the regional register of Volunteer Organizations, appearing in the category “Civil commitment and protection and promotion of rights”.

At the beginning of the 2021-22 academic year, the Association is preparing to activate the DEBHug service, anonymous telephone listening service, with the help of the university.

In all this time, those six students became ten, then fifteen, then thirty, then forty.
And working together, talking to each other, collaborating, reminds us of the most important message we want to share:

You are not alone.

Our story

Meet the team

Martino Fenoglio

Martina Bellino

Maria Grazia Castagno

Simone Torino

Stefano Falchi

Mariateresa Grillo

Lisa Nencioni

Haniyeh Mohammadkhani

Quokka Quokkis

We can help, We will help.