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Caledonia
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The Grove
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Opportunities
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Inspiration
Inspired by the Caledonian Forest of the Scottish Highlands, Caledonia creates a community for our Highlanders.
Volunteer hours often become just another number in a spreadsheet, while opportunities get lost across campus platforms and Discord servers. We wanted to make service easier to discover and give students a meaningful way to see their contributions grow.
What it does
Caledonia turns community service into a shared, growing experience. Students discover opportunities on campus and across Newark, log their hours, and grow their own tree in an interactive 3D forest.
Campus opportunities come from Highlander Hub and club Discord announcements. A separate external tab connects students with organizations such as JerseySTEM and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Together, the trees make individual contributions and collective impact visible.
How we built it
We built Caledonia with React, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, and Three.js, supported by a Flask backend and Tiger Data PostgreSQL database.
Our Discord bot collects volunteer announcements from moderator-selected channels. Gemini helps turn those posts into structured opportunities and classify ambiguous service activities, while GitHub Actions schedules updates every three hours.
We used Lovable and AI-assisted development to refine the interface. We also credit Git City, whose open-source project informed our approach to the shared 3D environment and layout.
Challenges we ran into
Our biggest challenges were connecting student activity to tree growth, turning inconsistent Discord announcements into usable event data, and balancing an enchanted forest aesthetic with a clear interface.
We learned to validate AI-generated results, preserve links to original announcements, and keep decorative elements from overwhelming the experience.
Accomplishments we're proud of
We connected opportunity discovery, Discord integration, hour logging, and a shared 3D Grove into one experience. Most importantly, we made service feel like a contribution to a community rather than just a requirement to complete.
What we learned
Good design makes the first step easier. AI works best with validation and iteration, and gamification becomes meaningful when it reflects real contributions.
What's next for Caledonia
We want to add personalized recommendations, service milestones, richer impact histories, and more Newark partnerships. Eventually, we hope to help other campuses grow their own community Groves.
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