There is a new movement in the business world.
More and more businesses are acting as a force for good, to be the change they want to see in the world.
Billionaires are giving away wealth to make a huge social impact.
Social responsibility is not only becoming an integral part of many companies but the core reason for their existence.
How can technology play a role in this change?
Well, change is already happening.
Tech founders and social entrepreneurs across the world have created and are creating a new breed of apps.
Meaningful apps where the goal is not just to make a ton of money but to make a real impact in the world.
To be able to scale the impact and accelerate the speed at which they can make an impact.
These purpose-driven entrepreneurs and enterprises want to give eyes to the blind, food to the poor, health and education for everyone and more.
We are excited to take you through such meaningful apps that are making a huge positive impact and hoping it will inspire some of you to do the same.
Be My Eyes is a free smartphone app for Android and iOS that connects low vision and blind users with sighted volunteers for visual assistance via a live video connection.
It gives you, a sighted user, a chance to become a part of a visually-challenged individual’s endeavours and help them live a normal life.
The volunteers can help in their own free time and have the option to decline requests.
Also, the app can be accessed from any part of the world, allowing you to enter the languages you speak and understand.
More than 1 Million users have downloaded the app since its advent on the Google Play Store, indicating the acceptability of socially empowered apps amongst people.
Download the iOS and Android App here. Follow them on Facebook here.
App Founders: Hans Jorgen Wiberg
Available on iTunes, Orange Harp is empowering shoppers to shop for more environmentally sustainable products.
They suggest the best options to buy fashion accessories, apparel, and body care items that have been manufactured locally with natural and recycled materials.
The manufacturers you will find on the app are environmentally conscious entrepreneurs, who believe in delivering simpler experiences through their products.
Orange Harp believes in giving back to the environment, not in the form of trash, but in the form of something that can be recycled.
All the partners of the app that you will find listed on the homepage have a story to tell about how their product is doing good to the fashion world and the environment we live in.
Download their iOS app here.
App Founders: Anbu Anbalagapandian
They refer to themselves as an urban ecosystem of kindness.
While the world is complaining about millennials and their addiction to apps/social media, chummy is proving that there are thousands of kind millennials who want to help others and pay it forward.
This app simply allows people to help each other in their neighborhood on a reciprocal/pay it forward model.
Kudos to the founders Vitali and Anton.
Download the iOS and Android App here.
App Founders: Vitalii Betin, Anton Zapolskyi
Feedie allows you to turn your food photos into real food for impoverished kids.
Whenever you snap your food and upload a picture of it on Feedie, the restaurant will donate to the Lunchbox Fund, the creators of this app.
The Lunchbox FUND will, in turn, use the donation to feed the needy in South Africa.
Their website says that over 12 million meals were shared via their platform.
Follow them on Facebook.
App Founders: Topaz Page Green
Listening to music is a therapy in its own right.
However, people who have hearing disabilities, or deaf are deprived of this therapeutic experience.
Therefore, MELO Apps has come up with the Ludwig van Beethoven Music app that allows the deaf to experience the finest music.
The app intended to cater to the needs of deaf people, allowing them to enjoy music at its best.
The app connects to a bracelet that converts sounds into a series of vibrations and colors. This allows the individual to feel the music.
Download the iOS and Android App here.
The ShareTree app enables individuals, schools, community groups, and businesses to develop and demonstrate characters and culture of high value. It empowers the user to live a life of purpose and meaning.
The ShareTree App is a social purpose platform developed to give schools, community groups, businesses, and individuals an opportunity to SHARE their acknowledgment of others’ character qualities thereby cultivating great character; as well as SHARE their time, skills and resources by making meaningful contributions to the community through volunteering.
We worked with Sharetree over 3 years to build an Android and iOS app and also a Kiosk mode app helping the ShareTree team enable meaningful, purposeful connectedness in organizations, communities, and individuals.
CHARACTER ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND DEMONSTRATION:
The app contains a deck of 120 digital Character Cards that can be viewed and shared with others. Each contemplative card features a character quality such as wisdom, purposefulness, hope, love, courage, respect, etc. and acts as a guide to reflect on and practice specific character qualities. Users can acknowledge other users in the way of sending them a character leaf that goes up on their Sharetree. A group’s Sharetree is created automatically by collating leaves of all it’s members.
The app automatically matches users with volunteering opportunities not only based on their skill sets and availability but also based on their purpose and what global initiative they are most aligned to. This feature allows organizations to make their CSR activity most impactful.
GRATITUDE EXERCISE:
The app allows users to take up a 30-day challenge/exercise where they will cultivate an attitude of gratitude by acknowledging 1 person every day.
Kudos to the founder Steven Farrugia for his vision and we (Appomate) are grateful to be the tech partner to bring his vision to reality.
Download the free ShareTree app now to discover all the features. Take up the gratitude exercise and send your 1st acknowledgment.
Too Good To Go is a smartphone application that’s making the rounds lately.
Reason?
It is allowing restaurants, diners, and cafés to sell their unsold meals as takeaways to users.
The leftover food, which would have otherwise ended up in bins, is now making its way to tummies of the late-night snackers for unbelievably cheap prices.
The app is reducing food wastage and ultimately reducing global greenhouse emissions, by saving the food that is, simply, too good to let go of.
Download the iOS and Android App here.
Founders: Klaus B. Pedersen, Brian Christensen
Does throwing away the good items when you are downsizing hurt?
Well, we’re sure it does because someone can still use them.
However, if the yard sale couldn’t find a buyer, who will help you find one?
Well, Forward is the answer to all your queries.
It allows you to connect with people who need your stuff and the price you charge is then forwarded to the charity of your choice.
It is an app that will not only help a purpose you are passionate about but also reduce the amount of wastage.
Download the iOS and Android App here.
While you cannot go to every part of the world and feed the hungry, the United Nations World Food Programme can.
So, whenever you tap on the rice bowl on the CharityTap application, you are donating a grain of rice to the needy.
You can check the number of rice grains that you have donated in the Game Centre of the application and make you every tap count!
Founders: Robert Gillies, Matthew Kwong
If you are an adventurous soul who never shies away from challenges, how about accepting one challenge for the environment every day?
Yes, with the We365 app, you will be given one small but significant social challenge throughout the year.
The challenges can vary from planting a seedling to finding shelter for a homeless dog.
You can accept the challenges as your responsibility towards the world and make the small changes that will count as game-changers one day.
It is so refreshing and inspiring to see more and more entrepreneurs and organisations wanting to create an impact using technology.
Support them by using their app and sharing this blog with your community.
If you like to have your app featured in our next blog, write to us as we’d love to hear from you!
If have a world-changing idea you would like to discuss, contact us or call us at 1300 781 794