Northstar

Inspiration

We are driven by the reality that anyone can face homelessness or an unsafe living situation at any moment. Everyone deserves a safe, comfortable environment, and we believe there needs to be a more responsive system in place to support people during their most vulnerable times.

What it does

Northstar provides real-time data on bed availability and meal supplies for those experiencing homelessness or housing instability. Unlike traditional resources like 311—which often suffer from long wait times and outdated info—our platform offers an up-to-date, personalized list of assistance programs tailored to what each user is actually eligible for.

How we built it

We built the web application using Next.js for the framework, Tailwind CSS for styling, and Supabase for our backend and database management.

Challenges we ran into

Our biggest hurdle was sourcing accurate, real-time data from local organizations. We also spent significant time hunting down direct PDF links and application forms to ensure users could actually access resources rather than just reading about them.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are incredibly proud to have moved from a concept to a functional, live website. Building a tool that handles real-world data to solve a human crisis was an ambitious goal, and we’re thrilled to have a working prototype.

What we learned

This project taught us just how much goes into building a fully functional, end-to-end application. Beyond the syntax, we learned about the complexities of data sourcing and the importance of user experience when designing for people in high-stress situations.

What's next for Northstar

We hope to automate our data collection by partnering directly with shelters and food banks. We also plan to expand our database to include more localized resources and improve the "eligibility engine" to make finding help even more seamless.

Built With

• next.js
• supabase
• tailwind.css