Technical Skills Used

• ‍iOS Development
• Swift
• XCode
• Google Dialogflow

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About the Project

As part of HackDuke 2019, I worked with other students to develop EmpowerUp, featuring Penny, our Dialogflow powered chatbot. EmpowerUp provides a streamlined, quick way for users to determine which resources are relevant and available to them, whether it be emergency housing, building credit, finding a job, and more. I was fully responsible for all the iOS development portion of this application and contributed to the development of the chatbot in Dialogflow.

This project was really special to me because I was able to create a tool that has the potential to really help improve people's lives. I used to volunteer as a financial counselor for people in the Durham community, helping people experiencing significant financial struggles. Many times, it was difficult for our members to access our office location. This was the main motivation behind this app - no one should be in the situation where they can't access this sort of easy, personal help because of lack of transportation or time.

In Durham alone, over 43,000 residents live below the poverty line. In a city where the eviction crisis is displacing residents that have lived here for generations, it's more important than ever to ensure that these residents can access the resources necessary to assist them. Although there are dozens of nonprofits in Durham that are eager to help, not having access to reliable transportation and conflicting hours of operation can make it difficult for individuals to access these resources. Regardless of situation, the vast majority of people who live below the poverty line or are homeless have a smartphone and with our app, they'll be able to use it to access these crucial resources.

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https://github.com/luizaawwolf/hackduke2019