Can we combat poverty with an app?

Can we combat poverty with an app?

My list

Author | Arantxa HerranzSan Francisco. The city with the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz prison. One of the largest cities in the United States and home to important tech companies: Twitter, Apple, Dropbox… The birthplace of entrepreneurship and of some of the most highly rated companies by employees; firms which, in turn, seek highly qualified professionals, which they attract with high salaries and bonuses.There is another side to this coin. The high purchasing power of the most privileged residents of San Francisco has contributed to the drastic increase in the price of rented accommodation, food and other living costs. Furthermore, many small companies are incapable of competing with these salary levels, which increases inequalities within metropolitan areas.san francisco and povertyOne of the consequences of these inequalities is that there has been an increase in the number of homeless people. This concentration of homeless people has also led to the owners of businesses in these areas and residents and politicians, to discuss how the problem should be dealt with.

A map of inequality

In order to try to resolve these situations, the first thing to do is to establish the exact figures. Three different groups have collected demographic data of San Francisco, with the aim of creating a map of inequality that helps those responsible for preparing policies and community defender organisations to design solutions for the inequality problem in the region.That is how Bay Area Equity Atlas came about, with the aim of improving the lives of working class residents and minority groups in the region. One of its most recent reports revealed, for example, that there is an overrepresentation of white senior elected staff in the Bay Area (particularly men), while the Latin communities or Asian or Pacific Islanders are underrepresented.homeless person

And what if we create an app?

Some cities have proposed technology-based solutions to resolve the problem of homeless people, particularly from the point of view of having applications to locate the homeless people and get them off the street.These applications tend to be designed so the people that live or work in districts in which there are homeless people can inform the authorities quickly and remotely. If a homeless person is lurking around a local business or appears to need medical attention, just a few clicks will inform the city of where that person needing help is located.But the matter is open to debate. While some believe these tools are a lifeline and a smart solution for a widespread problem (the idea is for it to be a way in which homeless people can obtain help quickly), for others it is just a snitch telling the authorities where destitute people are located. The city of Seattle has an application called “Find It, Fix It”, which enables residents to inform the city of public problems with a message that includes a location and a description. Users send problems by category, such as illegal dumping sites, graffiti, dead animals and “other notifications”. And this is where there has been an increase in notifications reporting these homeless camps.

homeless person eating

It all depends on the system

It is often said that technology is not good or bad per se. What determines whether it is good or bad is how it is used. And this is something that can be extrapolated to this situation. Can applications be created and deployed that help and do not harm homeless people?The answer will most certainly depend on the effectiveness of the city’s system of services offered to homeless people. On the resources available to help those people. And, of course, on the way in which communities coexist with a high-risk population that is often misunderstood.Images | Jimmy Chan, Brett Sayles, Alvin Decena, Matt Collamer

Related Content

Recommended profiles for you

PC
Paola Cavallo
L.u.m.s.s.a.
I work for the social resrarch
LS
Luis Sarmiento
Telefonica
Presales
PG
Permyakova Galyna
PATRIZIA
Director Real Estate Development
MT
Mohamed Tatanaki
Roken Al Khalig
N/a
SP
Salvatore Pepe Pepe
GraffitiForSmartCity
Owner
SC
Sharon Cottle
City of Cape Town
I am the Mayco Member for Corporate Services in the City of Cape Town
EY
Emily Yates
City of Philadelphia
I sit withing the Office of Innovation and Technology and report to the Deputy CIO
LP
Levente Polyak
Eutropian
managing Director
RG
Ruben Garnica-Minroy
Tecnologico de Monterrey
Assistant professor
MQ
MDO TAMARA QUIROZ GUZMÁN
CAMPUS DE PENSADORAS URBANAS DELICIAS REGION CENTRO SUR
PUNTO FOCAL
NK
Niamh Kelly
Newcastle University
2nd year BA architecture student at Newcastle University
JE
Jose M Ezquiaga
Jme11968
CEO
AA
Alice Assad Wassall
IPCCIC
Researcher
SH
Seunghoon HAN
Haans 2 Do
Urban Designer
SS
Sorchan Simbolon
Mentoring Self Improvement
Founder my company and icrease more and more
SR
Sean Rombach
LCPS
Student
FC
FIDEL CORREA SERNA
OPNE CONSULTORES Y SERVICIOS
Gerente
SL
Sedrick Lakpa
United Storytellers
Director
LP
Leslie Portillo
Organization
President
JV
Juan Carlos Valen
Barcelona Activa
Technical advicer in digital and new media advertissing