Every year, millions of volunteers dedicate their time to vital community projects, from organizing food drives to leading local clean-ups. According to Feeding America, over 44 million people in the U.S. faced hunger in 2022. Community drives are a critical lifeline, but their success often hinges on a major challenge: logistics.
Coordinators juggle spreadsheets, group chats, and printed maps. Volunteers can spend more time driving inefficient routes—costing time and fuel—than collecting donations. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) notes that transportation is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, making efficient routing not just a time-saver, but an environmental benefit.
To see how Community Care transforms the volunteer experience, check out this short video from one of our youth leaders sharing their excitement for the launch.
The core of this challenge is a spatial problem, which is where a Geographic Information System (GIS) becomes essential. GIS technology is the engine behind modern logistics, used by major delivery companies to optimize routes and manage fleets. According to industry reports, route optimization using GIS can reduce fuel consumption by up to 30% and significantly cut down on volunteer driving time. By bringing this powerful technology to the community level, Community Care transforms a complex logistical puzzle into a simple, visual, and efficient operation.
Today, we are thrilled to launch the early preview of Community Care, a map-centric platform designed specifically to solve these logistical hurdles for organizations like yours. It's a real-time coordination tool that puts everyone—admins, volunteers, and stakeholders—on the same page, literally. To better serve our diverse communities, the application is also available in Spanish.
What is Community Care?
- Plan with Clarity: Draw custom regions on a live map, assign them to teams, and manage all your operational data in one place. Stop wasting time with static maps and ensure no neighborhood is overlooked.
- Execute with Confidence: Volunteers in the field can see exactly where to go, create new markers for donations, and update their status with a single click. Our automated route planner calculates the most efficient path, reducing driving time and fuel consumption.
- Monitor in Real-Time: From your "headquarters" view, watch as the map updates instantly. No more guessing who has done what. See your entire operation unfold live and make data-driven decisions on the fly.