Outsiide

Front page of Outsiide, showing map with marker+description placed on San Francisco (Qoom framework)
Secondary page of Outsiide, if the user wishes to add a marker on the map through submitting a form (Qoom framework)
Bubble - discussion forum for Outsiide (discussions based on event location)
Bubble - adding new events using a form
Bubble - viewing current events on a map
Bubble - viewing a specific discussion and its replies

Inspiration

Having been in quarantine for the past two years, we've seen a large decline in outdoors-related activities and a lack of social interaction between fellow peers. From a survey of 60 students, over 75% of classmates said that they were more isolated now than they were before the pandemic. Additionally, nearly 90% of them didn't go outside for exercise.

We found, after investigation, that the main part of this problem is a lack of awareness about where outdoor gatherings are. There isn't a suitable compilation of all outdoor-related activities that individuals can look to on a regular basis, which leads to this cycle of decreased social interaction.

Going back in person this year, we've felt the struggles of the pandemic and want to figure out a way to increase social interaction between individuals, promoting mental health either through exercise or just mental wellness talks outside. From an NYU study, only half of all students exercise weekly; we face a major health crisis as physical education is not stressed in modern-day society.

What it does

Meet Outsiide. The perfect place to learn about outdoor gatherings throughout your local community. In it is a comprehensive map containing the current/future meetups happening around the world. We strive to provide descriptive details for each event, with each event needing to contain the activity being done (e.g. hiking, running, yoga, etc.), the level of difficulty, the time and place, and a short description of the event itself. If you wish to create an event yourself, it's simple! Create an account on the Outsiide platform and fill out the details about your event. Note that there are also preventative measures to make sure that one account isn't creating multiple events at a time.

A complementary aspect to this map is our community-based forum, which focuses on increasing interaction between individuals, where fellow individuals have a safe space to talk about outdoor-related activities happening in their local area. Here, individuals can remain informed on specific details about the event or just ask outdoors-related questions to a larger community.

How we built it

Using HTML/CSS/JS under the Qoom framework, we developed a minimum viable product that is accessible through Github. This contains the map-based framework and allows for the user to add markers to the map itself whenever he/she wishes to add an event. Note that we used Qoom's OpenDB database platform to store the different form outputs that were given, that the map would access to place markers across the globe.

Using the Bubble platform, we formed a prototype of our future Outsiide website. Here, there is an additional user login feature as well as the community forum feature that was discussed before.

Challenges we ran into

One significant challenge that we ran into was getting the map to load on external providers other than Firefox (e.g. Google Chrome and Safari). We had to figure out how to show the map onto other internet-based services, which meant sifting through the underlying framework behind Chrome, Safari, and Firefox and outlining their distinct differences.

Another challenge is being able to place the markers on the map itself using the OpenDB database. We found that it was difficult to access the elements of the database itself, having not too much familiarity with the Javascript language; however, we were able to present the markers to the map at the end and produce a strong website using the Qoom database.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

All four of us came in not being strong in coding in Javascript and integrating APIs into an HTML framework; however, through dedication and experimentation, we were able to produce a map-based service that we were proud of at the ending. Furthermore, we were able to utilize the Qoom framework, something that we haven't touched before this hackathon, as well as its underlying OpenDB Qoom database. Going into uncharted territory is a difficult process; however, we believe that we provided a solid framework that can be built upon for future endeavors.

From a market survey of 55 individuals, 95% said that they were willing to try the website out on a weekly basis, and 100% were willing to try it out at least once. Along with this, from a 2-day pilot of 25 students in our high school, every single user has cited tremendous growth in their exercise habits and outdoor interactions. We are excited to be making such a profound impact in the wellness space and impacting the lives of so many in such a short timeframe.

What we learned

Through this process, we've learned more about the Qoom framework and its OpenDB structure and are excited to utilize it further in the future to integrate it with our local school.

Furthermore, we enhanced our knowledge in HTML/CSS/JS through this experience through the integration of a map and form to add markers to the map themselves.

Lastly, we understood the root issues of mental wellness after the pandemic to formulate our solution around through surveys and own personal research in the field. This left us better equipped to understand how to structure our website and how to present our solution.

What's next for Outsiide

Having built a minimum viable product, we plan to upscale our website to what we proposed on the Bubble platform, complete with a community forum and user login feature. Having gotten positive reviews from our peers, we wish to integrate this in our local school through Outdoors Club, a club that we are a part of, seeking to address mental wellness issues and allow individuals to be outside more.