CARIN Community Platform

Decentralized tools for neighborhood-level crisis response, coordination, and mutual aid

CARIN (Community Action Response & Information Network) was a rapid-response software initiative launched in March 2020 to help communities self-organize in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. The platform aimed to empower neighborhoods with open, decentralized tools for communication, resource sharing, and volunteer coordination- especially in the absence of responsive top-down infrastructure.

Built with WordPress and membership plugins, the site featured a custom GIS integration using OpenStreetMap to deliver live, neighborhood-specific dashboards. The system was designed for accessibility, enabling community leaders with minimal technical experience to launch and manage localized support systems quickly and independently.

Though the platform saw limited adoption during the pandemic, its underlying infrastructure and approach directly influenced later work, particularly Mentor Connector.

Core Features

• Preconfigured dashboards for neighborhoods and cities
• Live status maps for businesses, services, and resource requests
• Volunteer and resource request matching system
• Built-in social tools: direct messaging, calendar sharing, forums
• Tiered privacy based on user role and community membership (i.e., member of Columbia neighborhood, part of Bellingham Community)
• Implementation guides for low-tech onboarding and independent setup

Project Media

Project Details

Role: Project leader, developer, designer
Built with: WordPress, MemberPress, OpenStreetMaps
Duration: ~7 months

Impact

• Brought together a cross-functional team of developers, nonprofit leaders, and community organizers
• Piloted in three neighborhoods and one regional community in Whatcom County
• Served as foundational infrastructure for future projects, including Mentor Connector
• Provided hands-on experience in civic design, mutual aid modeling, and building decentralized systems

For this work, I was awarded the Ken Gass Community Builder Award.

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