iMobilize

Empowering Social Activism Through Technology

A comprehensive mobile application that eliminates barriers to social and civic activism by providing educational resources, location-specific legal guides, and tools for coordination and communication.

10 Reduced Inequalities
16 Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions

iMobilize

Legal Resources
Community Building
Event Organization

Course Information

Course: CSCI 497 - Computer Science Capstone

Quarter: Fall 2024

Professor: Dr. Shameem Ahmed

University: Western Washington University

Meet Our Team

Four passionate computer science students dedicated to empowering social activism through innovative technology.

Hanze Aggabao

Hanze Aggabao

[aggabah@wwu.edu]

Graduate Student & Research Lead

Ben Huynh

Ben Huynh

huynhb22@wwu.edu

Undergraduate Student

Joe O'Bryon

Joe O'Bryon

[obryonj@wwu.edu]

Undergraduate Student

Carver Rasmussen

Carver Rasmussen

[rasmusa4@wwu.edu]

Undergraduate Student

The Problem

Social and civic activism faces significant barriers that prevent widespread participation and effective organization. Current solutions are fragmented across multiple platforms, creating a stressful and complicated experience for activists who simply want to create positive change in their communities.

Key Challenges:

  • Social Media Burden: Activists are forced to navigate algorithm-driven platforms where important information gets buried
  • Fragmented Resources: Legal information, safety protocols, and organizing tools are scattered across different platforms
  • Lack of Education: 80% of college students are unaware of their university's policies on protests
  • Safety Concerns: Many activists lack access to location-specific legal guidance
  • Coordination Difficulties: Organizing peaceful protests requires juggling multiple tools

158 Million

Americans participated in activism in the past 5 years (Pew Research, 2021)

80%

Of college students unaware of protest policies at their universities

75%

Of grassroots movements struggle with coordination and organization

Our Solution: Stress-Free Activism Organization

iMobilize creates a dedicated, algorithm-free space for peaceful protest organization. We eliminate the burden of navigating social media platforms and provide everything activists need in one secure, easy-to-use application.

Core Principles:

Stress-Free Experience Peaceful Focus Community-Centered Safety First

What Makes Us Different:

  • All-in-One Platform: Unlike fragmented solutions, everything you need is in one place
  • No Social Media Required: Escape algorithm manipulation and content censorship
  • Location-Specific Legal Guides: Know your rights in your specific jurisdiction
  • Easy Navigation: Intuitive design that anyone can use, regardless of tech experience
  • Educational Resources: Learn effective, safe protest methods and strategies
  • Secure Communication: End-to-end encryption without the complexity

How iMobilize Differs from Existing Solutions

We analyzed 12 existing platforms and identified critical gaps that iMobilize uniquely addresses. Here's how we compare to the most popular solutions:

Facebook Events & Groups

What they offer: General event creation and group management

Limitations for Activism:
  • Algorithm manipulation buries important posts
  • Content censorship and account suspensions
  • No legal resources or protest-specific guidance
  • Events designed for general purposes, not activism
  • Privacy concerns with data collection
  • Distracting news feeds and advertisements

TurnUp

What they offer: Activism platform with "impact points" and social features

Why We Avoid This Approach:
  • Gamification trivializes serious social issues
  • Points system creates competition instead of collaboration
  • Users shouldn't feel obligated to "earn points" for their beliefs
  • Focus on metrics rather than meaningful change
  • Limited legal resources and safety information

Telegram/Signal Groups

What they offer: Secure messaging for organizing

Limitations for Full Organization:
  • Only messaging - no event management tools
  • No legal resources or educational content
  • Complex setup for non-technical users
  • No location-specific guidance
  • Lacks community building features

Meetup

What they offer: General event organization platform

Not Built for Activism:
  • No security features for sensitive organizing
  • No legal resources or safety protocols
  • General-purpose design, not activism-focused
  • Limited communication tools
  • No educational resources about protest rights

iMobilize - Our Unique Approach

What we provide: Comprehensive activism platform designed specifically for peaceful protest organization

Our Competitive Advantages:
  • Algorithm-free environment - no content manipulation
  • Integrated legal resources specific to your location
  • Purpose-built for activism, not general social networking
  • No gamification - focused on empowerment, not competition
  • All tools in one place: events, communication, education, legal guides
  • Protest-specific safety features and protocols
  • Educational resources about effective peaceful organizing
  • Privacy-first design without data mining
  • Simple interface accessible to all technical skill levels
  • Community building without social media distractions

Why Existing Solutions Fall Short

The Problem: Current platforms force activists to choose between effectiveness and ethics

What Sets Us Apart:
  • No dependence on profit-driven algorithms
  • Stress-free organizing without social media complexity
  • Legal education integrated directly into the platform
  • Built by activists, for activists - not corporate interests
  • Focus on peaceful, effective change rather than viral content
  • Security without sacrificing usability

Bottom Line

While other platforms offer pieces of what activists need, iMobilize is the only solution that combines secure communication, event organization, legal education, and community building in one algorithm-free, purpose-built platform designed specifically for peaceful social activism.

Global Impact & Evidence-Based Need

Our solution addresses a documented need affecting millions of Americans and has potential for global impact. Based on rigorous research and verified statistics:

158M+ Americans participated in activism (past 5 years) - Pew Research, 2021
80% of college students unaware of protest policies - Survey of 4,000 students
48% of Americans engaged in some form of activism - Pew Research

Students & Young Adults (18-29)

50M+ individuals - Highest activism participation rate but lowest knowledge of legal rights and protest policies

Community Organizers & Leaders

20M+ activists - Experienced organizers needing better coordination tools without social media dependency

Legal Advocates & NGO Workers

5M+ professionals - Those providing support and education to grassroots movements

Potential Impact:

75+ Million Americans could benefit from streamlined activism tools and education. Framework adaptable for democratic countries worldwide with estimated 500M+ potential users.

SDG Alignment: Directly supports SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions)

Technology Stack

Frontend

  • React Native (Cross-platform mobile)
  • Expo (Development framework)
  • React Navigation

Backend

  • Node.js with Express.js
  • PostgreSQL (Relational data)
  • MongoDB (Document storage)

Security

  • JWT Authentication
  • bcrypt Password Hashing
  • Signal Protocol (E2E Encryption)

Research & Development Methodology

Phase 1: Systematic Literature Review

Papers Analyzed: 10 academic papers and reports

Duration: 3 weeks

Key Findings:

  • Applications for social activism is not a dense space with very few applications meant for the purpose of streamlining protests
  • Some papers discussed valuable insights for developing specialized applications for organizing protest, using strategies revolving around informing, activating, and explaining
  • Exaimination of modern trends and tools used to push anonymization and data activism within certain applications
  • Analysis of meta-activism emerging in virtual digital spaces and metaverses

Outcome: Identified critical gaps in current activism technology landscape

Interview Results
User Personas
Prototype Mockups

Phase 2: Competitive System Analysis

Systems Analyzed: 12 existing platforms

Duration: 4 weeks

Key Findings:

  • Most platforms lack legal resources integration
  • Poor user experience in crisis situations
  • Limited community building features specific to activism
  • No platforms combine all necessary activism tools
  • Security vs. usability trade-offs poorly balanced

Outcome: Defined unique value proposition and progressed with implementation of scraping live state law documentation. We also included a comprehensive dashboard including the top most relevant information for the user, including upcoming events and movements the user is apart of.

Competitive Matrix

Phase 3: User Research & Prototype Testing

Interviews Conducted: 4 college activists

Duration: 3 weeks

Key Findings:

  • Privacy and anonymity are major concerns - users prefer aliases over real names
  • Users want verification of attendance numbers before committing to events
  • Event discovery happens through word of mouth and social media platforms
  • Local relevance is critical - users don't want events too far away
  • Clear event details needed: type of protest, safety expectations, turnout
  • Users want follow-up information about activism outcomes and results
  • Need for user verification systems to prevent bots while maintaining anonymity
  • Uncertainty about safety at events is a major barrier to participation

Outcome: Validated five-tab layout design and confirmed need for privacy-first approach with local event focus; including new terms of service pop-up before any users login, and organizing movement functionality.

Interview Results
User Personas
Prototype Mockups

Database Design

Our database design supports scalable user management, complex group hierarchies, and efficient event coordination:

  • Users Table: Authentication, profiles, and privacy settings
  • Groups & Group Members: Hierarchical group management with roles
  • Events & Participants: Flexible event system with group integration
  • Forums & Posts: Community discussion platform
  • Legal Documents: Structured legal resource database
  • Notifications: Smart notification system with expiration

Application Demo

Demo Highlights

  • User registration and authentication flow
  • Creating and joining activist groups
  • Organizing events with group integration
  • Browsing legal resources and guides
  • Community forum interactions
  • Real-time notifications system

Final Implementation

Our final implementation consists of a comprehensive mobile application with a robust backend API, featuring five core modules that work together to provide a complete activism platform.

Authentication System

  • JWT-based secure authentication
  • Profile management with privacy controls
  • Role-based access control
  • Password strength requirements

Groups Management

  • Create and join activist groups
  • Hierarchical roles (Admin, Moderator, Member)
  • Public and private groups
  • Member management and permissions

Event Coordination

  • Event creation and management
  • Group-organized events
  • Category-based filtering
  • Access codes for private events

Community Forums

  • Discussion forums and posts
  • Nested comment system
  • Group-specific forums
  • Moderation tools

Smart Notifications

  • Event reminders and updates
  • Group activity notifications
  • Customizable notification preferences
  • Real-time push notifications

Legal Resources

  • Washington State RCW database
  • Protest-specific legal guidance
  • Know-your-rights resources
  • Penalty classifications and explanations

Technical Architecture

Mobile Frontend

  • React Native with Expo
  • Cross-platform iOS/Android/Web
  • Navigation with React Navigation
  • State management with React hooks

Backend API

  • Node.js with Express.js
  • RESTful API design
  • Rate limiting and security middleware
  • Comprehensive error handling

Database Layer

  • PostgreSQL for relational data
  • Legal documents with RCW content
  • User bookmarks and personalization
  • Automated legal data updates

Security Features

  • JWT authentication with 24h expiration
  • bcrypt password hashing (12 salt rounds)
  • Input validation and sanitization
  • CORS and Helmet security headers

Code Repository

iMobilize - GitHub Repository

Complete source code for both frontend and backend implementations

View on GitHub

Database Design

Our database design supports scalable user management, complex group hierarchies, efficient event coordination, and comprehensive legal resource management:

  • Users Table: Authentication, profiles, and privacy settings
  • Groups & Group Members: Hierarchical group management with roles
  • Events & Participants: Flexible event system with group integration
  • Forums & Posts: Community discussion platform
  • Legal Documents: Washington State RCW database with penalties and summaries
  • Legal Citations: API-sourced citation tracking from leg.wa.gov
  • Legal Data Updates: Automated update monitoring with error tracking
  • User Legal Bookmarks: Personal legal document references with notes
  • Notifications: Smart notification system with expiration

Future Work & Extensions

Geographic Expansion

  • Extend legal database to all 50 US states
  • International legal frameworks integration
  • Multi-language support for global accessibility
  • Local jurisdiction-specific guidance
Impact: Could serve 2+ billion activists worldwide

AI-Powered Features

  • Smart event recommendations based on user interests
  • Automated legal document summarization
  • Real-time risk assessment for events
  • Intelligent community matching algorithms
Impact: 40% improvement in user engagement and safety

Enhanced Security

  • Complete Signal Protocol implementation
  • Anonymous communication channels
  • Advanced privacy controls
  • Emergency contact and check-in systems
Impact: Critical protection for activists in authoritarian regions

Institutional Partnerships

  • Integration with legal aid organizations
  • Partnership with civil rights groups
  • University and educational institution integration
  • Government transparency initiatives
Impact: Direct access to professional legal support

Analytics & Research

  • Movement effectiveness tracking
  • Social impact measurement tools
  • Academic research collaboration features
  • Policy change correlation analysis
Impact: Data-driven activism and evidence-based advocacy

Platform Extensions

  • Desktop and web applications
  • Smart watch and wearable integration
  • Offline functionality for crisis situations
  • API for third-party developer integrations
Impact: Ubiquitous access across all devices and platforms

Research & Academic Potential

iMobilize represents a significant opportunity for ongoing research in digital activism, social movement coordination, and civic technology. Future academic collaborations could explore:

Digital Organizing Effectiveness

Measuring how digital tools impact real-world activism outcomes

Legal Literacy & Participation

Studying the relationship between legal knowledge and activist engagement

Technology for Social Justice

Exploring how technology can advance equity and human rights