Pinpointing Calls to Action: Using GPS for Social Change
HealthcarePublic InterestPublic ServiceSustainabilityTechnology
Oh. Good morning, everyone. Now, many people think of Key West Florida as a paradise where the parties never stop. Now, maybe some of you know from experience, I won’t ask any questions. But that may be true, but there’s also a dark side to the party culture when it comes to public health. So teenagers on the island suffer from an unusually high rate of sexual health problems. A health care center called Womankind is working to change that. They provide sex ed programs and clinical care to teenagers on the island. Being a small clinic with many patients, Womankind always depends on new volunteers. They use the traditional digital tools like Facebook and Twitter to attract volunteers. But if you’ve ever created a Facebook event, you know that there can be a big difference between raising awareness of an issue and actually getting people to show up. As a software developer, I’m helping Womankind develop an app called GeoPackages that will mobilize large groups of volunteers. For example, let’s say that Womankind is creating a new campaign to promote safer sex. The directors of this campaign place this goal and related objectives inside of a call to action. You can think of this as a virtual package that’s pinned to a spot on the map. By traveling to collect this call to action, that is checking in at its location, volunteers unlock the ability to contribute to the campaign. They can view related notes, photographs, objectives, and network with other volunteers. With check-ins and other game-like features, the networking app allows these campaign managers to rapidly attract volunteers and assign them to parts of an existing project. So they can easily crowdsource common tasks such as writing press releases. Meanwhile, for the young people who are interested in cause-related careers, GeoPackages serves as a sort of resume. By traveling to collect calls to action and contributing to campaigns, they can boost their resumes and their chances of securing interviews with nonprofit employers. With this app, GeoPackages, Womankind will inspire prospective volunteers to jump off the couch, walk through the clinic’s front doors, and confront a health crisis. Because paradise isn’t paradise unless you’re healthy. Thank you.